Dawn of a New Day
by relativestranger
Summary: A simple mission gone awry, he was rescued by her in the middle of nowhere. As a result, his life is turned upside down. Who is this mysterious woman and what is her link to him and Konoha? FINALLY completed! Sequel: "Unfinished Business"
1. Wrong Time, Wrong Place

**Chapter ** **One – Wrong Place****, Wrong Time **

After two long weeks' worth of surveillance, he was finally able to go home from his reconnaissance mission. Usually, a squad would be accompanying him on a mission but since stealth and secrecy was of utmost importance, he had volunteered himself.

It quickly became evident that this was a one man, covert operation once the Hokage was finished explaining it. He knew that he was more than capable of handling a mission of this magnitude; he had been an ANBU agent for almost five years and an ANBU Black Ops Leader for four of those years.

So the Hokage immediately agreed to allow him on the mission when he volunteered himself. He relished in the fact that she didn't even have to think twice about selecting him with something this important. Thus, in fears of an impending war, the Hokage had sent him to the Earth Country to collect any intelligence that could shed some light on their plans.

Over the last three years, relations between the two countries had been eroding at an alarming pace. Of course, the two countries were never on the best of terms to begin with but lately, it seemed to have gotten even worse. Weary of the rumors of a possible, imminent and looming war, she sent her best ANBU captain to recover any secret plans of espionage and sabotage that the Earth Country may have in its possession.

He found himself in deep thought over what an impending war would mean for him, his friends, and his family.

Would they all have to fight?

What kind of missions would be required of them? What would be asked of them?

How much would they have to sacrifice?

He was in awe of how one tiny scroll could do such irrevocable damage to one country. It never ceased to amaze him how an item as small as the one he was currently holding could wield so much power and intelligence that people would be willing to kill and die for it.

He had been so absorbed in his thoughts that he broke the cardinal ninja rule number one: become distracted. He was barely able to roll out of the way on time when a giant sword was swung at his head.

_You fucking idiot! You are an ANBU captain for fuck's sake! You know better than to be ambushed by someone in the middle of a mission! _

His attacker towered over him; which was impressive considering the captain was rather imposing himself; checking in at 190 centimeters. His attacker however, was a good two heads taller and wielding a sword that was more than half of the size of its menacing wielder. He was also bigger... as in wider.

Much, much wider.

His attacker was bald with only a tuff of bright red hair visible at the crown of his head. He had a giant mustache and long, braided goatee stemming from his face. He was wearing unconventional and untraditional ninja garments that the captain had never seen before and had no distinguishing items or any features that helped discern where he was from.

And he was wearing a disturbingly, disgusting smirk on his face.

The ANBU captain unsheathed his own sword which paled in comparison to his opponent's. And bereted himself once more; he knew better than to let his guard down, even if he was close to home.

His opponent swung his sword in a downward motion at him but the captain twisted through the air and landed gracefully on a high branch of a nearby tree. The attacker however, was struggling to remove the imbedded sword from the earth. The captain saw the opening and launched himself out of the tree and aimed a devastating kick at the buffoon's head.

At least it would have been devastating with any other opponent beside the one he was currently fighting.

He grunted as the momentum from the kick carried him into a tree. His body lied crumpled at the foot of the tree but he shook the attack off and charged at the smaller of the two shinobis. The giant used the same attack on the ANBU agent; swinging his sword downward but was once again able to easily evaded the sword.

The captain kicked the man in the stomach when he tried lifting his heavy sword again and sent the giant flying upward into the air. The captain met him skyward, focused his chakra to his hand, and punched him in the head that sent him spiraling downward back to earth; sending rocks and other various forms of debris and shrapnel skyrocketing upward.

He slowly crawled out of the massive crater that was created by the impact and readied his sword for a fourth attack.

_Doesn't this guy know any other attacks? _

His attacker kept swinging while the smaller man was able to easily evade. Losing his patience at this game of cat and mouse, the captain waited for the next downward swing. When it came, he braced his own sword against the giant's.

His feet dug into the soft earth for leverage and upon looking into the giant's eyes, he saw it glow an ominous yellow as he bared a feral smile, "Gotcha," his voice was deep and unnerving that sent off booming vibrations.

And that was when the captain knew he had made a horrible, possibly fatal mistake: he had fallen into his attacker's trap.

And now, he was in deep trouble.

He scrambled to think of a way out but damn it! He wasn't Shikamaru! Yes, he is a genius but time was not on his side. The giant's size and strength was too imposing; he had about a 100 pound advantage over him!

And trying to tangle with such a force has left his cognitive abilities seriously hindered.

The giant's massive hand hovered over the captain's chest. And before the captain had a chance to comprehend the possible implications, the attacker shoved the captain with his giant palm. The captain was hurled backward and crashed into a tree with a booming crash 20 feet away. The attacker was still grinning but the captain was determined to wipe that smug look off his face.

He pushed himself off the ground and took a step forward but found his footing to be wobbly. His vision was blurring; almost burning, his hearing muffled; as if underwater, and his movements stagnant; like the time he participated in a drinking contest with his friends.

He fell to his knees and blinked furiously and shook his head violently trying to get his vision and hearing to clear but to no avail. His limbs felt as heavy as lead yet at the same time as limp as noodles; unable to lift and move; unable to defend himself.

He had grand visions of his glorious death and he couldn't believe his life was going to be ended by this giant buffoon.

How fucking cheap.

He slumped to his side and the last thing he saw was the giant raising his sword and then his world turned black.

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A/N: Who could our fallen hero possibly be??? It shouldn't come as a surprise I just like keeping it a bit more mysterious ;)


	2. Save Me

**Chapter Two – Save Me **

She was on her way home from picking herbs when she saw a young shinobi fall to its side and a menacing looking ninja raise his sword. She didn't want to interfere but in good conscious, she couldn't leave the poor ninja such a shitty fate.

She disappeared in a swirl of vibrant, snowy, white jasmine petals and appeared before the injured ninja's unconscious body. She stopped the giant blade with her bare hands and shoved the sword at the attacker making it so the hilt of the sword smashed into his face with a sickening crunch.

He screamed in blinding agony as he clutched his face; staggering backward and howling like a wounded, wild animal. Looking down, she saw the fallen ninja's discarded sword. Slipping her foot under the blade, she kicked it up into the air toward her and caught it one handed.

The attacker was still wailing in pain and clutching his face but she readied herself for a quick attack as she launched herself into the air and slashed at the man in two swift, crossing motions before burying the sword into the attacker's stomach. She thrust the sword upward leaving a long, bloody gash on the large ninja. He gasped and gurgled before he crumpled on to the ground.

He didn't even stand a chance against her.

She rushed over to the unconscious ninja and saw his mask.

_ANBU Black Ops? _She asked silently.

She quickly tore the mask off and underneath was a breathtakingly, beautiful, young man; he had a chiseled, strong jaw line. He was frighteningly pale but unbelievably handsome with dark raven hair.

She located and checked his pulse and found that it was weak and thready. Knowing he needed medical attention immediately, she lifted him up and threw his arm over her shoulder as she gripped his slender waist.

From the jostling, a small scroll fell from his body. She wanted to leave it but thought better of it; he was a ninja that had just been attacked and is on the verge of death. He must have been protecting something important; important enough to die for. She kicked the scroll into the air and caught it with her free hand.

She dragged the unconscious, limp body to where she had dropped her herbs earlier. _Damn it, _she cursed at him._ You heavy ass motherfucker!! _She deposited the scroll into the basket and picked it up as she hauled the dead weight home.

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He groaned painfully and blinked several times to get his bearings. His vision was fuzzy and he tried to rub his eyes to clear it but was unable to lift his arms. His vision finally clear and he looked at the unfamiliar surroundings.

"Fuck," he muttered as he gingerly lifted his head up, "Oh, fuck, I've been kidnapped," he dropped his head back to the pillow, "Just fucking kill me now." He tried moving his arms again but realized his control over his motor skills were non-existent. He stopped trying when he heard foot steps approaching.

"I see you're awake," a gentle voice said. His head snapped in her direction; clearly not expecting a woman to be his captor. Ignoring the pain and weakness in his limbs, he struggled out of bed, "Careful, you're not fully recovered yet," she warned.

"I'm fine," he huffed. But when he finally made it to his feet, he buckled under his own weight. She moved swiftly and held him up and gently scolded, "You were saying you were fine?" He narrowed his eyes at her, "Now, stay in bed until you are able to stand under your own weight. I won't tell you again."

One look of his eyes and her stomach fell to the floor.

Realizing that she _wasn't_ his captor, he reluctantly set himself back down on the bed. Seeing that he was able to perform some motions, he rubbed his temples in hopes of getting rid of the headache forming there, "What happened?"

"What do you remember?" She asked him as she poured hot tea into a cup and handed it to him.

"I was fighting this giant. He- he shoved his palm into me and... I don't know... my body... just felt... it felt like it was shutting down. I thought I was dying."

She nodded her head, "Sounds about right. You were hit with a rare jutsu. He was able to attack the flow of your chakra circulation. You would've died if I hadn't come along. Either he would've killed you or the jutsu would have."

She furrowed her eyebrows in deep contemplation and quietly muttered, "I didn't know anyone else knew that jutsu."

He nodded in understanding. Remembering his manners he said, "Thank you."

"No need for that," she shook her head at his gratitude. "Just promise me you'll stay in bed until you are strong enough to move around. You're not out of the woods yet."

He acquiesced at her request, "Good. Now I'm making congee so when it's done you need to eat. Understood?"

He scowled at her condescending words, "I'm not a five year old!"

She blinked at him; the outburst clearly not expected, "I never said you were," she calmly pointed out.

"Yea, well... you talk to me like I am!"

She cleared her throat and steadily said, "I don't appreciate having you raise your voice at me; **_especially_** since I saved your sorry excuse of an ass. So I'm just going to pretend that your outbursts are because you've had some blood loss and the oxygen was cut off from your brain for a little bit too long."

While she appeared to be composed and calm, the aura she was emitting told him otherwise; it was suffocating and oppressing. Normally, he wouldn't back down from a battle but he hadn't recovered yet and if she defeated his opponent, he didn't stand a chance in his weakened state.

She looked over to the table where his ANBU mask laid, "So you're a shinobi?" It was more of a statement than a question but he nodded anyway, "Konoha shinobi." She tensed slightly but then relaxed again.

His eyes widened as he remembered his mission. He patted down his body and found nothing. He opened his mouth but was cut off, "Looking for this?" She asked as she dangled the scroll in front of him. He snatched the scroll from her hands and put it back in his pocket, "No need to be rude. I would've given it to you had you asked politely."

"Sorry. And thank you."

They heard the fire fizzle; signaling the congee was done, "I'll get you some of that congee to eat. Stay put." She stepped out of the room and left him alone with his thoughts.

While her stature belied it, the woman that saved him was without a doubt strong. She had a powerful aura and he was able to pick up her overwhelming chakra signature. She also carried him back here and he was no lightweight.

She had long, flowing dark hair that was of a deep red; almost a dark violet in color. And was tied up messily. And in stark contrast to his eyes, hers were a deep brown; borderline black. Her hair was pulled back away from her face which highlighted her dark piercing eyes.

She was unafraid and un-intimidated by him; unusual for him since people were usually shy and timid in his presence. He also admired that she wasn't put off by his constant scowling and rudeness; even going as far as _threatening _him.

She was tall and lean as well. When she had held him up, it was safe to say that she was only half a head shorter than him. She wore a simple dark green kimono which masked the skill and strength that lied beneath. She looked purely feminine; completely different from the kunoichi at home, further shrouding her skills in secrecy.

She intrigued him; piqued his curiosity and left him wanting to find out more.

She returned with a steaming bowl of congee. He sat up on the bed, leaning back on the pillow that was propped up on the bed frame. She handed the bowl to him, "Careful, it's hot." He carefully slurped a spoonful of congee and was pleasantly surprised; it was delicious. Not like the bland congee his friends or family would give him whenever he was sick.

He gulped down another spoonful and asked, "Where are we?"

She chuckled, "It's just me here. The nearest town is almost ten miles."  
He choked slightly on the congee, "Ten **_miles_**?" he asked incredulously and she nodded, "And you have no problem with that?"

She smiled and chuckled, "I have everything I need here. I grow my own food and if I do need something, I have no trouble walking to town for it. It isn't as bad as you think. It's good exercise."

He was still skeptical but nodded anyway, "So it's just you?"

Her smile faded slightly, "Yea... just me."

He saw the sadness in her eyes and tried to change the subject, "So how much longer do you think it'll before I recover completely?"

She knew what he was trying to do and was grateful for it, "In about three days." He sighed irritably, "That long?"

"We aren't dealing with the common cold or a cough. You almost died. So yea, it'll be that long."

He bit the inside of his lip and thought about his predicament; he **_has_** to get back to Konoha to give the Hokage the scroll. It could contain pertinent information that they were all waiting for.

She saw his brows furrow together, "I'll tell you what, you rest here for the rest of today and tomorrow and you should be strong enough to leave for Konoha," his eye brightened, "_However_," she stressed, "I will accompany you."

"You don't–" she held her hand up, "Yes, I do. I can't let you leave here in your weakened state and have you stumble out of a tree, break your leg, get ambushed by someone, and without enough strength, get yourself killed and wild animals gorging on your dead carcass."

He was speechless; never had he heard such morbid and graphic things come out of someone's mouth. "Now, I'm coming with you so I can keep an eye on you and if you argue with me I'll burn the fucking scroll. Understand?" She smiled widely to show that she was in no way, shape or form, joking with him. He was impressed with how she carried herself and was reduced to just dumbly nodding.

"Good. Now that that is out of the way, I realized that I haven't properly introduced myself. I'm Terakami Michi."

He bowed his head, "Nice to meet you, Michi-san. My name is Hyuga Neji."

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Oh, looky, looky, it's Neji-kun! What a surprise! It wasn't that much of a surprise was it? Enjoy and review!


	3. As If By Fate

**Chapter Three – As If By Fate **

They talked for a while longer but when she saw the light of day fading and the dark night take over, she excused herself and told him to finish his congee. He once again felt as if she was treating him like a child but she nonchalantly brushed his accusations off.

When she left the room, the Hyuga simply huffed at being regarded and ignored like a child. Although, he supposed he deserved it. After all, he _was_ sitting in the bed, arms crossed, and wearing a _pout_ like an _impetuous __child_. He was stubborn and acted like an ungrateful jerk when he raised his voice and snatched the scroll from her.

He quickly continued eating his congee and remembered how her body tensed after he told her he was from Konoha and wondered why. Most people would have missed it, for it was only for a split second. But he wasn't like most people. He was an elite ninja, a captain, and a genius. Very rarely does _anything_ escape his detection. Especially with the powerful eyes he possesses.

He heard her leave the house even though he could tell she was trying to be quiet and discreet. Although he discerned that if she _really_ wanted to sneak out, he wouldn't have been able to detect it so easily.

He quickly finished his bowl of congee and tried to test his strength again. He groaned in pain as he tried to put more weight on his feet; his circulation still hadn't completely returned, "This is going to be the death of me," he muttered.

He grasped the chair two feet away in order to support himself. He then reached to the foot of the bed and stumbled the rest of the way toward the window. He pushed aside the curtain and looked out to see her perched on a tree. The girl that rescued him certainly was certainly a puzzle.

Her smile was both happy with a hint of sadness, the sparkle in her eyes shone with kindness combined with regret, and her voice was gentle but laced with grief. How can one woman give off so many conflicting emotions in her young life? He didn't know how, but he was determined to find out.

He watched as she curled onto herself; burying her face into her arms and knees, hiding from the world and occasionally staring up to smile at the sky.

She wasn't like any one he'd ever met. She wasn't quiet, shy, and timid like most girls back home. But she also wasn't loud and obnoxious like the others. And she clearly wasn't fawning over him like everyone else who enjoyed chasing him up and down the village until he was breathless. Most of the women in Konoha would _**kill**_ for a few moments time alone with him in a room. But she had him alone in her house _all day_ and she seemed completely unaffected by his presence. All that only added merit to her character and intrigued him even more.

He continued to observe her; it was dark and hard to see but he saw her holding a small item in her hands. It glinted when the moonlight it and he became curious to what it was and its importance. He then saw her body shook slightly in which he assumed was from the cold.

Beyond his understanding, he felt a tiny, unfamiliar, alien tug at his inner core while he observed her which left him rather perturbed.

Perhaps it was a good thing that she insisted to accompany him back to Konoha. Maybe then he can learn more about his mysterious companion. And maybe he could find out what this bizarre feeling was that was slowly taking over his conscience.

When he saw her descend from the tree, he quickly stumbled back into bed; screaming internally and ignoring the pain that shot through his entire body. The last thing he wanted was her to know that he had been watching her and be accused of spying. He heard the door gently close shut and the quiet click of the lock as she tip-toed to the other side of the house.

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She quietly made her way out of the house after their conversation and jumped into the nearby tree. She knew that he had heard her.

But she needed to get out.

She needed to escape.

She needed to think.

She needed her sanctuary.

Whenever she felt overwhelmed or lonely or sad, she'd climb into this tree and hide from the rest of the world. And whenever she was this high up from the rest of the world, things became clearer. Things made more sense from up here and helped with her understanding whenever things became too confusing.

She fingered the small gold chain and locket. The stars shone brighter than usual in the dark, black, velvet sky for it was a cloudless night. She finally turned her attention to the brightly shining moon, "I'd never thought I'd meet a Hyuga in my lifetime. And you just had to send the genius. Of all the Hyugas in Konoha, you send the hardheaded, jackass of a genius. I suppose I deserve it... I've been avoiding this long enough." She chuckled as she looked at the locket briefly then at the moon again, "Looks like it's time to leave."

She hadn't intended to leave so early but with the arrival of the Hyuga, she could no longer avoid it.

His uniform was a clue in itself; she had recognized it but was hoping it was merely her imagination.

She then knew he was a Hyuga when he first opened his eyes but was desperately hoped it was simply a coincidence.

_Fat chance,_ she thought to herself.

She wasn't ready to leave yet but she made a promise and she intended to keep it. The appearance of the Hyuga meant it was time to make good on her promise. And besides, she's been away for far too long and if she stayed any longer, there would be hell to pay. All the sorrow and painful wounds have healed but the uncertainty still ate at her very core.

She wrapped her arms around her legs; shielding herself from the cold.

She felt a pair of eyes stare and bore into her and decided it was time to retreat to her bed. If she stayed out here any longer, the Hyuga's Byakugan was going to reveal more than she was willing to let him learn about her at the moment.

She put on her chain and locket and looked to the sky once again and smiled at the bright stars, "It's time to go home."

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A/N: Ah, this is so disappointing... no reviews? This is so flipping discouraging and makes me want stop writing the darn thing. With no feedback, my spirit has been shot to hell. And if this continues, I don't see myself updating this story


	4. A Pleasant Companion

**A/N: Week 5 of school means midterms... yippee**

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**Chapter Four – A Pleasant Companion**

He woke up to the amazing aroma of lean pork, salted duck egg, green scallions, and ginger congee. The wonderfully alluring scent dragged him out of bed and into the kitchen; making him forget that he was injured. He accidentally knocked over a glass mug as he was trying to regain his footing.

Startled, she jumped and turned to see him hovering over the kitchen island, catching his breath. Clutching her chest as she tried to control her breathing, she evenly asked, "What are you doing out of bed?"

"It smells good," he bluntly stated; his voice hoarse in the early morning. She chuckled and shook her head at him, "It's not like I'm not going to let you eat. I would've brought it to you."

"I don't like the bed. It's too soft. And lumpy," he gruffly grumbled. She laughed again, "Yea, it's a pretty old bed. I never got a new one because I never have company."

She paused for a second, "Take a seat. The congee is almost ready."

He nodded and sat himself on a chair by the kitchen island and waited patiently for his breakfast. "You must have woken up pretty early if the congee is almost done."

She nodded at his observation, "You're not wrong. I had to pick the scallions and ginger from the garden."

He winced; she was going through an awful lot of work on his account, "I'm sorry to have inconvenienced you."

She stopped her stirring and looked at him oddly, "What do you mean?"

"You're going through all this trouble just to help me recover."

She raised an eyebrow at him and then proceeded to laugh uncontrollably. He watched as her entire body shook with laughter as she clutched her belly with one arm and the kitchen counter to keep her from toppling over with the other.

"You- you thought that- hahahaha," she heaved with more laughter. Neji stared bewildered at her; oblivious to what was so funny.

Her laughter finally died down as she wiped a tear from her eyes, "You thought that I woke up bright and early this morning to make congee just for you?"

The look on his face told her everything she needed to know: he really did think that. Her raucous laughter returned, "Oh, you are a riot!" She leaned over the counter and looked him in the eyes, "Sorry to burst your bubble sweetie, but the world doesn't revolve around you. You're not the only one that eats congee. And unlike you, I do have chores to do in the mornings."

She turned her attention back to the cooking congee, her body still shaking slightly with silent laughter.

"Inconvenienced you... ha-ha... trouble... recovery... oh, that's a good one."

He on the other hand felt like an idiot but was also relieved that his assertions of her before were correct: she was neither intimidated nor impressed by him.

She was proving herself to be a pleasant companion.

His thoughts were broken when she placed the bowl of steaming congee in front of him. "Eat up. Afterward, go back to your room."

"I'm fine, really." She looked at him sternly and he raised his arms up in defeat.

He was quiet surprised that he gave up so easily. He knew that he would've eventually done so but he gave in without much of a fight. But then again, he was finding it easy to do things he normally wouldn't do whenever he was around her.

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He swallowed the rest of his congee and tried one last ditch effort for avoid the soft, lumpy bed (to no avail,) he finally retreated.

Once in the confines of the small but rather cozy room, he didn't rest; he refused to remain unproductively idle. So he sat in the middle of the room on the hard wooden flooring and began to meditate. He calculated that by now, he would've been home, giving the Hokage his report if it hadn't been for that bumbling idiot.

_But then again, if it weren't for him, I would have never met her, _a small voice made itself known to Neji.

His eyes shot open; his concentration was broken by that stray thought, "What the fuck is **that** supposed to mean?" He grumbled to himself.

When he received no answer, he tried to rationalize the thought, "You're merely intrigued... after all, she is like no one you know. You're just curious... yes, that's all it is... mere curiosity."

His internal discussion was cut short when Michi entered the room, "I thought I told you to go to bed."

He looked up and grinned, "Ah, you said 'go back to your room,'" trying to mock the tone she used on him, "You never said anything about going to bed."

She eyed him wearily and remembered this morning's exchange, "Why, you sneaky little bastard."

He smirked at his small triumph, "Well, since you're meditating, you want to come meditate in the yard with me? Sitting in the grass is a hell of a lot better than sitting on hardwood."

He nodded enthusiastically at the chance of breathing in fresh air.

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They plopped down together in the soft, dewy, green grass. He could tell that it had been mowed recently as it still held the scent of freshly cut grass.

He hadn't had a proper chance to explore the property since his house arrest but when he sat down in the middle of her lawn, he saw just how big it was.

There was a beautiful garden with flowers and vegetables and lush greenery everywhere.

And the scent.

There was a wonderfully intoxicating aroma of jasmine that lightly wafted through air.

The house was well maintained as were the bushes and trees. It was obvious that she had been here for a while and spent a lot of time and dedication taking care of the house.

He looked over to her and saw her in deep, peaceful meditation.

And she was captivating.

She felt his stare and opened one eye, "If you're not going to meditate, I'm going to send you back to **_bed_**." He smirked at her playful threat and began to meditate along with her.

She was right, grass is a lot better than hardwood; especially if you find enjoyable company to share it with.

She was proving to be a pleasant companion indeed.


	5. Things Revealed

**A/N: Two chapters in one day??? Now that's what I call productivity! Okay, now back to studying. Read and review!**

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**Chapter Five – Things Revealed**

He couldn't seem to find a comfortable position to sleep in. He was becoming restless; tossing and turning until he had finally had enough. He kicked the blanket away from his now sweaty body and pushed himself off the bed.

Spending a day meditating really did wonders for the body; he felt his strength returning to his limbs. He no longer had to hold on to stationary objects for support and his legs were holding his weight perfectly.

Thinking the cool, night breeze would help him on the elusive quest for sleep, he tip-toed out of the house; not wanting to disturb the other tenant of the house.

When he made it outside, he saw her sitting; leaning against the tree and approached her quietly, not wanting to disturb her thoughts. However, she felt him approaching, "You _really_ don't like that bed do you?"

"No. As a matter of fact, I hate it. It's stinky." She chuckled at his childish response and looked at him, "You look better. I see you're walking perfectly fine now."

"Yeah, I feel great."

She patted the grass next to her, "Sit. Let me check on you." He obeyed and her hand began to glow bright green against the dark of the night. She carefully examined the flow of blood and chakra through his body, "You're recovering quicker than I thought."

"I heal quicker than most. Although never as quick as Naruto. That boy is truly a freak," he babbled off-tangent.

"I'm just going to pretend that I understood what you just said," she grinned at him.

"Hn. So what you did just now... does that mean you're a medical ninja?"

She merely chuckled at his suggestion, "Not at all."

"But-," he pointed out.

She raised her hand to stop him, "I'm not a trained medical ninja. I don't get the official title."

"But how do–"

"You learn things here and there. You pick things up along the way. You learn what your body is capable of. You learn your strengths and weaknesses through trial and error. You remember the things your father taught you," the last sentence was quietly murmured as she smiled sadly into the night sky.

Her father.

She finally volunteered something about herself. He wanted to ask her more and considered asking her what village she was from but didn't want to impose on her privacy. It was obvious that she wasn't ready to divulge any information anytime soon and concluded that she had her reasons and decided it was best not to press the issue.

After all, he wouldn't want some stranger badgering him about himself.

He looked up at the dark night sky, "It's getting cold. Shouldn't we go back inside?" He asked quietly. "You can go if you want. I've grown accustomed to the cold," she murmured.

He shook his head at her, "Yea, right. So you just like to shiver like that for shits and giggles?" he sarcastically asked.

Her eyes turned into slits and she punched him lightly, "Careful now. You don't want to get snide with me or I'll make sure you're confined to a bed and eat out of a straw for the next two years."

He refused to back down from her threats and simply smirked at her, "I would like to see you try."

Michi threw her head back and began laughing at the absurdity, "Oh, dear Hyuga, you do _not_ want to challenge me. You will only get yourself hurt or embarrassed or both so I suggest you quit while you're ahead."

"You know, you haven't seen me at the top of my game. That raving lunatic yesterday caught me off guard and got in a lucky shot with that funky, fancy pants jutsu. But don't you worry about me Terakami-san, I can hold my own. And I'm the type of person who doesn't _know_ when to quit."

"Or how," he added as an afterthought.

"I will crush you like a bug. I eat guys like you for breakfast. It's my favorite meal."

"Bring it on."

She gave him a smirk at his bluff and turned her attention to the sky again. She took a deep breath, savoring the dewy, musky scent of the air, "You can't see the stars like this in the city."

He followed the trail of her eyes, "You're right. The stars aren't quite like this in the city. I never knew the stars and moon could be this big."

She smiled brightly, "It's beautiful. And bright. It's breathtaking. My father would have loved this. He's always going on and on and on about them. He would make up stories about them. Or he would tell me stories that he heard from others."  
He decided to take the chance, hoping it wasn't a mine field and asked, "Are you close? To your father?" She nodded faintly, "We were. Inseparable even. Mom couldn't pry us apart no matter what she tried."

"What changed?" She looked at him, puzzled by his question, "Nothing has changed. I'm still close to my father; still love him, still talk to him. Just... not physically. He died a few years ago."

He was making progress with her. Turned out they had more in common than just the mutual proclivity for meditation, "I'm not going to say 'I'm sorry.' I hated it when people said it to me when my father died. I assume you don't like it either."

"All the sorries in the world wouldn't change anything. He would still be gone." She turned to look at him, "Don't get me wrong, I'm not angry or bitter about it or anything. Shit happens and I understand it. Death is a part of life... If nothing else, it's something we _all_ share. But I just wish I had a little more time with him. Have you ever felt that way?"

"Every second of every day," copying her actions, he looked up at the sky, "My dad died when I was four. I didn't get much time with him and there's nothing in the world I want more than to spend time with him."

He was surprised at how easily he divulged such an important and vital turning point of his life to her but he just chalked it up to her asking a question and him answering. That was the simplest method of avoiding the hard, uncomfortable answers that were plaguing him.

She finally stood up and brushed herself off, "It's late now. We have to leave early tomorrow for Konoha."

He agreed and carefully pushed himself off the ground. He was feeling exceptionally pleased that she was beginning to open up to him. He was learning more about her; sating his curiosity even though it was temporary.

He was learning.

No matter how minimal the information was.


	6. There's No Place Like Home

**A/N: Ah, midterms are over! What a relief. To commemorate the momentous occasion, here are two new chapters. TWO!!**

**You know the drill read, enjoy, and review!****  
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**Chapter Six – There's No Place Like Home**

She walked out of her room still in her light blue cotton pajamas rubbing the sleep from her eyes and yawned.

When she saw a fully clothed Neji sitting on a chair by the kitchen table, she jumped, "Jeez!" She exclaimed as she braced herself on the wall. "What the fuck are you doing up so early?"  
"You said that we were going to leave bright and early today. So I woke up."  
"It's six in the morning! By early, I meant eight!"  
"Well then you should have specified the time. This is your own fault."

She folded her arms, irritated at his snide remarks. Knowing he was anxious to go home, she had no choice but to make things a bit more difficult for him, "Well you're just going to have to wait until _I'm_ ready to leave."  
He shook his head at her, "I'm sure it doesn't take you very long to get ready."

The smug look on her face made him uncomfortable and with good reason, "That's what you think. I'm not going _anywhere_ until I eat breakfast. You'll just have to stay put until then."

He wanted to groan, to hit his head on the table but refrained from such immature behavior. He knew that she was only trying to get a rise out of him so he opted for clenching and unclenching his fists and calmly said, "I need to get home immediately."

"And you will... _after_ I eat my breakfast."

She was **_so_** transparent. She was doing things slower than usual and she was obviously taking her god damn time with her morning routine and breakfast just to piss him off.

And it's working!

She was still futzing around the house for **_more_** than 45 minutes after she had woken up. Just as he was about to demand her to stop screwing around, she placed a plate and a bowl in front of him.

"You're not leaving until _you_ eat breakfast." He looked down at what she had served him: a cup of green tea, pickled plums, and chawan-mushi, a soft egg custard that he hadn't had the pleasure in eating since he was a child.

He grumbled before picking up his utensils and began eating.

In actuality however, he had been drooling over the meal since she placed it in front of him. But she didn't need to know that so he bitched and moaned about wasting time before digging in.

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Ten minutes later, they were _finally_ ready to journey their way to Konoha. They made their way through the trees, Neji naturally taking the lead due to his Byakugan.

He'd occasionally glance back at her and wondered how she kept up with him and traveled effectively with what she wore. Today, she was wearing a tight, dark blue kimono that gradually faded into a light green. At the end of the sleeves, collar, and bottom of the kimono was decorated with small, discreet, designs that looked almost like the stars they were looking at last night.

She didn't carry anything with her so he supposed it was because she wasn't planning on staying once they arrived at Konoha. For some reason, he felt uneasy about the thought of her leaving.

"Watch out!" She shouted but it was too late: the branch he landed on snapped. Luckily, she reached down in time and grabbed his arm, stopping his descent. "You should stop staring at me and start paying attention to where you're going," she teased.  
"I was _not_ staring!" he cried indignantly.

She pulled him up onto the branch she was standing on, "Right, right. That's why you landed on a weak branch in which you **_would've_** avoided had you been paying attention. Makes perfect sense to me," she sarcastically quipped.  
He straightened his stance and lifted his head, "I was merely testing your reflexes."

She raised an eyebrow in skepticism, "How's this for reflex?" She asked as she shoved him out of the tree. He was surprised and flailed slightly at his loss of balance but he landed gracefully on his feet at the bottom of the tree. When she joined him, he dusted himself off, "I do believe that was uncalled for."

"I have been itching to do that since you woke up, you arrogant prick." She ascended to the trees once again leaving him to shake his head; _she just called me an arrogant prick! She_ _really isn't like all the others. Good_, he thought to himself as he followed her trail.

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They reached the Konoha gates and were shocked to find the guards asleep at their post; complete with loud snoring and a trail of dribbled drool.

_I'm going to have to tell the Hokage about this._

When they arrived in front of the Hokage's tower, Neji turned to Michi, "I'll be right back. This shouldn't take long so if you want to explore, just... I don't know... enjoy yourself." She nodded and watched as he disappeared into the building. She quickly spun around, squealed excitedly, and dashed off in the opposite direction wearing a large smile on her face.

She made her way to the small food stand and bought herself some dango. She walked around absorbing the surroundings; re-familiarizing herself with the village she had been away from for **_so_** long.

She launched herself up to the highest point of the village and took the sight in, "Hmm, it's good to be home!" She shouted at the top of her lungs with her arms stretched out to her sides.

She breathed in deeply and let out a content sigh. She stayed there; plopped down on the ground while she slowly savored her dango.

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"Hyuga, finally! You were supposed to be back yesterday afternoon!"  
"I apologize, Hokage-sama," he respectfully said while bowing his head, "I ran into some problems."

Tsunade sat up a little straighter, "What kind of problems?"  
He shook his head, "It's nothing important. I was ambushed on my way back."  
"You call that not important? What happened? Who was it?"

"I don't know. He wasn't wearing anything that could identify him."  
"Where is he now?"  
"Dead."  
"How?"

He furrowed his eyebrows. He hadn't asked Michi how she killed the buffoon and scolded himself at the oversight, "I don't know," he replied unsteadily.

Tsunade jumped out of her seat, eyes wide and asked, "_You don't **know**_?"

He truthfully told her, "I wasn't the one that defeated him. He performed an odd jutsu on me and I was knocked out. A woman came along and defeated my opponent and healed me. That's why I'm a day late. I was recuperating in a cottage not far from here."

Skeptical, Tsunade asked, "An ally?"

"It's hard to tell. But she did rescue me. She was unaware that I'm a Konoha ninja until I told her."

Tsunade nodded in understanding; still uncomfortable with the Hyuga's mysterious savior but decided there were more important matters to tend to, "Very well, I'll have this document deciphered immediately. You're dismissed."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," He bowed once again, and left her office to find Michi.

Tsunade sat her desk contemplating what this meant. She tried to focus on the secrets of the scroll, but Huyga's story bothered her. This issue with the attacker and then this mystery woman that saved Neji ate at her.

Was she an ally?  
Was she an enemy?  
Was she an enemy posing as an ally?

There were too many unanswered questions and now, they all had to be on their guard.

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After she finished her dango, she strolled happily through the streets of Konoha when she was nearly tackled by a streak of yellow and orange, "Hey! Watch where the fuck you're going!"  
"Gomen! If Sakura-chan gets me, she'll kill me!"  
"Sakura?" She asked.  
"Naruto!" a third voice screamed. "Ah," the yellow and orange boy yelped as he hid behind Michi.

When Michi turned to see what the boy was so scared of, she saw a fist flying at a high speed at her face.

Instinct took over and Michi stopped the fist with her bare hands, mere inches from meeting her face. Michi let out a breath as she moved her head to see her assailant.  
The stranger gaped and widened her eyes, "Gomen! I didn't see you there. Are you okay?"

The pink haired kunoichi furiously apologized as Michi tried to tell her she was fine.

"Tsk, Sakura, she's fine. She stopped your punch. Your fist didn't connect," a new ninja made his presence known.  
She stopped her apologies as Michi nodded to confirm she wasn't hurt, "Hey, you're not hurt!"  
"Gee, don't sound so disappointed," Michi replied sarcastically.  
"No, it's just that-"

She was cut off when the one in the orange said, "No one has ever stopped Sakura-chan's attacks. She has the strength like that of a monster!"  
She cracked her knuckles, "What did you call me, Naruto?"  
"Nothing," he squeaked quickly as he hid behind Michi again.

The one wearing a bored look on his face spoke up again, "How _did_ you stop Sakura's attacks anyway?"

She explained, "I just directed all my chakra to my palm as reinforcement." She looked at her hands and nodded to Sakura, "You're lucky you had those gloves on or you would have a broken hand."  
"Sugoi, you're amazing!" the loud blond exclaimed.

"I see you've made yourself some friends," a fourth voice said.  
"Neji, you're back!" the blonde greeted.  
"Neji-san, we were worried when you didn't return yesterday. Isn't that right, Shikamaru," she said as she elbowed the dark haired boy. He simply rolled his eyes, "Yea, sure. We were all worried. Troublesome woman," he muttered under his breath.

"Yeah, right," Neji cleared his throat, "Allow me to introduce you, this is Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura, and Nara Shikamaru. This is Terakami Michi."   
"Nice to meet you," the Naruto and Sakura happily chorused while Shikamaru mumbled uninterested.

Neji then turned his attention to Michi, "Are you planning on leaving soon?"  
She smirked at him, "You can't get rid of me that easily, Hyuga. I think I'll stay for a while."

For some reason, he was relieved by her answer. He was going to offer her a place to stay but Naruto beat him to it, "Great! Maybe you can stay with Sakura-chan!"   
Shikamaru hit him on his head, "Baka! You can't offer someone a place to stay without getting permission first!"

Sakura shook her head, "Oh, no! I'd love to have a roommate!"  
"I don't want to impose," Michi refused.  
"Don't be silly! Ever since Ino started going out with that Kiba, she's never home. It'll be nice to have a roommate again!"  
"Then it's settled!" Naruto shouted as he stuck his tongue out at Shikamaru, "Michi-san will stay with Sakura-chan!"

Michi nodded her head at Sakura, "Thank you."  
"It's no problem!"

Naruto rubbed his stomach, "I'm hungry! Let's go eat! Come on, Sakura-chan." Sakura however shook her head, "I can't. My break at the hospital is over. I need to go back to work. Neji, you know where I live. Just send Michi in my direction. I'll see you at home... roomie!" She waved as she ran off.

Naruto pouted at Sakura's departure but remembered his rumbling stomach, "Let's go eat at Ichiraku!" Neji and Shikamaru ignored him as if he weren't there as Michi observed the trio, "Oh come on guys!"

But the two friends still didn't budge; yawning, examining their fingernails, just tuning out in general.

Finally, Naruto relented, "Oh, fine! I'll pay!"

Neji and Shikamaru chorused, "Let's go then," as they walked ahead of the fuming blonde, "You cheap bastards!" He shouted as he ran to catch up to them.


	7. Cruel and Unusual

**AN: And here's the second chapter of the promised update. Remember to review!!!**

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**Chapter Seven – Cruel and Unusual **

After their ramen expedition, Naruto left to find "fuzzy eyebrows" for some training and Shikamaru grumbled how it was his turn to take care of the deer on the Nara compound, thus leaving Neji and Michi alone together to roam the streets.

"I would've offered to let you stay at my place as payback for nursing me back to health but I don't have enough room at my apartment. And it would be highly inappropriate, not to mention improper, for a man and a woman to share living quarters."

When she didn't answer him, he looked around and found her staring at the newly (and atrociously) built shopping center near the edge of the village, "What... in the fuck... is _that_?"

He became annoyed at the fact that she hadn't been paying attention to him, "Did you hear anything I said?"

She waved her hands wildly to shush him, "You said you're a stick in the mud. But I already knew that. You didn't seem to have a problem with propriety when I let you stay with me. Now tell me what the fuck this thing is!"

He sighed in irritation and walked over to her, "It's the new shopping center. They just finished it last week."  
He watched as her jaw dropped, "It's... disgusting! Who in the right mind would commission this?"  
He smirked, "That would be the Hokage."

She gritted her teeth and dropped her head to her chest; "Was she on drugs when she made this decision?"

He was visibly stunned that she had the balls to speak out of turn about the Hokage the way she did but tried to ignore the blatant disrespect, "I don't know. You'll have to ask her."  
She turned away in revulsion, before she finally turned her attention to him once again, "What now, tour guide?"

He looked up at the sky and saw the sun beginning to set, "Well it's getting late. Sakura should be leaving the hospital by now. Do you want to see where you'll be staying?"

"But- but what about food? What about dinner?" She asked worriedly.

"Well, I guess we can eat before we head to Sakura's. Maybe we can pick her up for dinner as well."  
She nodded her head enthusiastically, "Yes, please. Dinner is good," she said as she made her way toward the direction of the hospital.

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Sakura and Neji watched in awe as Michi polished off her Kalbi soup and her seared ahi tuna, shrimp, and scallops marinated in miso sauce. When she finished she sat back in her seat and patted her stomach and exclaimed, "It doesn't get any better than that!"

When a waiter passed by their table, she stopped him and requested, "Can I get some green tea ice cream?"  
Her two dinner companions' jaws dropped, "You can still eat?"  
"There's_ always _room for dessert," she replied flippantly as if that was the most natural thing in the world.

Her ice cream arrived and she looked over to her two acquaintances, "Are you sure you guys have had enough to eat?" They nodded wearily at her, "Would you like some ice cream?"  
"No thanks, I'm on a diet," Sakura declined.  
Neji however, _did _want a taste of her ice cream but he was 23 years old for crying out loud! He can't be caught_ dead _eating such a childish treat so he declined as well.  
"Suit yourselves."

She decided to rub it in their faces as she shoveled some ice cream in her mouth, "Mmm," she moaned, "You don't know what you're missing."

And grinned in glee when she saw the glint of annoyance in their eyes.

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After finishing dinner, in which Neji paid for, they headed to the bar at Michi's insistence.

"You don't strike me as a drinker," Sakura observed.

Michi held the sake dish to her lips, "Oh, I don't do this often. It's been a good two years since the last time I had a drop of alcohol."  
"You don't drink when you go into town?" Neji asked.

"Of course not," she objected offensively, "What do you take me for? I'm no alcoholic! And besides, I don't stay in town too long." When she noticed they hadn't touched their drinks, she asked, "You're not drinking?"

Sakura shook her head, "I have an early shift at the hospital tomorrow." Michi nodded her head in understanding, "And what about you? Can't hold your liquor?"

Neji scoffed at the idea, "I'm not Lee. I can hold my alcohol just fine. It's a Tuesday. It's highly inappropriate to drink during a weekday."  
Michi choked slightly, "Any time is a good time for a drink or two... or three."

She gulped down the last of her sake and stood up, "Okay, I'm ready to go now," she set down some money on the table and led them out of the bar.

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They arrived at Sakura's apartment and she invited the other two in. Neji remained in the living area while Sakura showed Michi to her room.

"This will be your room. Sorry it's a little barren. Ever since Ino moved out, I haven't had the time to furnish the room."  
"Don't worry about it. I don't need much. It's quaint; comfortable. I like it," she turned to Sakura, "Thanks for letting me stay here."  
"No need for that. If you're a friend of Neji's I'm sure you can't be a bad person, right?"

"Have you _met _Neji? Not exactly the poster child for goodness," Michi joked as she and Sakura smiled at each other knowing that they will get along very well.  
They walked back out to the living area, "So is everything okay?" Neji asked as they came out.  
"It's perfect," Michi smiled.  
"Great. I should be leaving. I'll see you tomorrow. Give you the grand tour."

Michi simply nodded, "Sounds nifty. Until tomorrow then. Good night."  
He gave the two girls a curt nod, "Good night, Michi, Sakura," and he promptly left.

Sakura turned to her new roommate, "Good night, roomie. Sorry we haven't had enough time to get to know each other."  
"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that. We have plenty of time to get to know each other now that we're living together." Sakura nodded her head, "You're absolutely right. I'll see you tomorrow then. Good night."

"Good night, Sakura."

The two girls retreated to their respective bedrooms.

Michi waited for an hour until she was sure Sakura was sound asleep when she slipped out of her bed and out the window. There was something she had to take care of if she was going to stay in Konoha for the long term.

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AN: My character's got quite the potty mouth on her... and I love it. I realized that in my last story, my character didn't exactly make friends with the rest of Konoha so I thought I'd rectify that and made this new character roommates with the one called Sakura-chan


	8. Happy to See Me?

**AN: Time for an update? I think it is. It may be a while before the next update. I have about ten million papers due and it's going to drive me insane. **

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**Chapter Eight – Happy To See Me?**

She slipped in through the window quietly which startled the occupant, "Gah! What is the matter with you?!" She half asked and half shouted.

She gently placed her feet lightly on the floor, "It's not my fault you weren't paying attention, you senile old goat."

She shook her head at the intruder, "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that! And how dare you! Have you forgotten who you're speaking to?!"  
"What's the matter with you? Afraid you'd get a heart attack in your old age?"

"Okay, you are now no longer funny," she scowled angrily but couldn't stay mad for very long, "I can't believe you're back. It took you long enough!"  
The latter chuckled as she was enveloped in a suffocating hug, "I needed some time alone. Granted, it was longer than anyone expected but I wasn't ready to come home yet. You know all about that don't you, Tsunade?"

"Still, I didn't expect to lose my best ANBU captain for _five_ years."  
"Well, I came back didn't I? That's more than I can say for some. By the way, the guards you posted at the entrance fell asleep at their post."

Tsunade sighed as Michi sat down in the chair and began to make herself comfortable, "I can't get those two buffoons to do anything right."  
"I don't blame them. Sitting there all day long _does_ seem pretty boring. Oh, and what the fuck were you thinking when you commissioned that monstrosity?"

Tsunade grimaced, "You saw that?"  
Michi gave her a dirty look, "It's pretty hard to miss. It's shit ugly!"

Tsunade gaped, "No need to be so brutal! It seemed like a good idea at the time. The plans and outlines and blueprints looked great... Who knew it would turn out to be such a... a..."  
"Disaster? Eyesore? Debacle? Atrocity?" Michi finished for her.

Tsunade raised her hand, "Okay, I get it. No need to rub it in. There's nothing I can do about it now. It's been built and I can't just tear it down. We poured a lot of money into it."  
"Well that's your first mistake. You never put more money into a project than is necessary. They made the damn thing so gaudy; I think I vomited a little in my mouth."

"Hey, now! I put up with you calling it ugly and a monstrosity but I won't have you insult me any more!"  
Michi surrendered, "Fine, fine."

It then dawned on Tsunade why Michi was here, "You came home with Neji."  
"Darn, you figured it out already? Well, it's to be expected I suppose. You _are _the Hokage."  
"You're the one who saved Neji. What happened?"

"He was hit with a paralyzing jutsu."  
"Like yours?"

Michi shook her head and scoffed, "Hardly. Mine has been perfected over the years and if I performed that jutsu on Neji, he'd be coming back to Konoha in a body bag. No, his was strange. The chakra that he forced into Neji was nothing I've ever encountered. My jutsu has two levels that I can control. I can cut off circulation of chakra and/or blood. Or I can attack your organs to immediately kill you. This jutsu... while I do force my chakra into my opponents, I don't leave any residue in the victim. I had a hard time fishing out all the foreign chakra that was attacking Neji's chakra system. From what I gathered, he was unable to attack his blood system and the residue that was left over made the attack less effective. With time, it would have killed him but it's nowhere near the level of mine. What I _can't_ figure out is how he knew an attack like this. Only my father and I were able to effectively use and perfect something like that."

"Do you think others know how to use it?"  
Michi huffed, "There better not be. I'll be very upset if there were!"  
"Oh don't be so sour. It's not like that jutsu is a bloodline limit."  
Michi looked at Tsunade incredulously, "That is beside the point! _My_ father created that jutsu! He was the one that perfected it and taught it to me!"

Not wanting to engage in a shouting match with her, Tsunade simply said, "Well like you said, your jutsu and his are different. They have different properties so they're not the same."  
Michi folded her arms and pouted, "They're similar enough."  
"Oh, stop being a child!"

Michi continued to sulk as Tsunade realized, "Wait a minute! Neji doesn't know you're a Konoha shinobi! He came into my office without a mention of meeting a Leaf ninja – just that some woman rescued him."

Michi had the decency to look sheepish, "Uh... no."  
"Why the hell not?"  
"He didn't ask, I didn't tell him."  
Tsunade became confused, "That's strange. Why wouldn't he ask?"

Michi shrugged her shoulders, "Beats me. I guess the quality of ANBU training has gone down. Anyway, don't tell him yet."  
"Why not?"  
"I want to see if he can figure out who I am himself."  
"You're playing with him!"

Michi smiled evilly, "You'd do the same if you had the opportunity."  
"You are a horrible little girl," Tsunade rebuffed but she grinned anyway.

"Everyone is going on and on about what a genius he is so I want to find out for myself. Let's see how long it takes him to piece together the puzzle," Michi snickered as Tsunade joined her.

Michi abruptly stopped, "My, my, my, what is he doing here so late?" She smiled as she felt his presence nearby.

"He must have forgotten to report something. Tell you what, I'll give you a week. Go out the window."

Michi saluted Tsunade and disappeared out the window.

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"Hokage-sama," Neji greeted.  
"Neji, what are you doing here so late?" she asked with a small grin.

"I just wanted to tell you that the woman who rescued me, Terakami Michi, will be staying in Konoha for a while."  
"Is she now?" she asked, her grin still plastered on her face.

"Yes. And I thought it'll be a good opportunity for us to observe her. See if she's a friend for foe. I know you had some concerns."  
"I did... I-I mean I do. I do. And that is an excellent idea! And since you're the one who knows her, I'll leave this assignment up to you. You've already befriended her and everything so..." she trailed off, "But I want you to keep me updated on what you find out."

"Of course."  
"Of course."  
The odd behavior of the Hokage caused tension and discomfort and he yearned to turn tail and run, "Well then, good night, Hokage-sama."  
"Good night, Neji"

When he left the office, he left out a long sigh of relief. That was by far the most bizarre encounter he had with the Hokage and he couldn't help but feel that the Hokage knew something he didn't. The cheshire grin she was wearing when he entered the office was a tale-tell sign.

He shook those thoughts out of his head when he felt a familiar chakra signature nearby.

It was Michi.

Knowing she was supposed to be at Sakura's, he hid himself to find out what she was up to. When he approached, he saw that she was talking to Kakashi.   
Despite the mask on his face, it was evident that Kakashi was confused. _Weird_, he thought, _how do they know each other?_

_--- _

Upon leaving the Hokage's office, she ran into an old face, Hatake Kakashi.  
"Michi! You're-"

Not wanting Neji to find out her relationship with Kakashi, she ran over to cover his mouth, "Sh! Pretend you don't know me!"  
He looked at her bewildered, "What?"  
"Just do it. And I'll explain everything later. Someone is following me. Perhaps you know him: Hyuga Neji."  
"Yea. He's six meters that-a-way. What on earth is going on?"  
"Don't worry about it. Just point me to our favorite pickle stand."  
"The pickle stand?"

She gritted her teeth; their conversation was becoming too long, "Just do it!"

Taken aback, Kakashi pointed to the pickle stand she was referring to, "Thank a bunch!" She shouted as she bounded away from him.

_What on earth is that girl up to? _ Kakashi asked himself but when he saw Neji follow Michi, it dawned on him, "Ah, you horrible girl, you," he chuckled quietly to himself.

---

When he decided to follow her, he ended up at the pickle stand.

"Pickles? Who eats pickles in the dead of the night?" He didn't realize that he had said it out loud until she said, "Late night cravings. You got a problem with that?"

Startled by her sudden appearance by his side he said, "No, not at all."

"Walk me back to Sakura's. What are you doing roaming the streets so late at night?"  
He found himself following her orders and walked with her, "There was something I needed to take care of," he replied.  
She bit into her pickle, "And it couldn't have waited until morning?"  
Neji stood straighter, "I didn't want to forget so I did it now."  
"Forget? Forget what? It's not like you're some old geezer with Alzheimer's."

"That's beside the point."  
"I don't see how that is. I mean you're not much older than me. What are you? 22? 23? 24? 25? If your memory is bad at this age, I shudder to think what it would be like when you're as old as dirt."  
"I'm 23 and my memory is fine."  
"Me too! So why are you worried about forgetting it?"  
"It's merely a precaution. Can we move on now?"  
"Fine by me you old fart. Hey, I know what to get you for your birthday... Do you prefer a walker, cane, or wheelchair?"

He stopped at her side and she kept walking. When she realized he was no longer next to her, she turned back, "You know, you are a lot meaner now than you were when we were at your cottage." His arms were folded and wore a scowl on his face.

She frowned, "I am?" She stared off into space to contemplate what he said, "It must be something in the air. Or maybe it's just you," she said as if coming to a shocking revelation.

He smiled sarcastically, "Okay, now you're just purposely being mean." They had arrived at Sakura's, "Good night... again."  
"Good night, Hyuga. I'll see you in the morning." He waited until he saw her disappear through the door before leaving.

He thought back to their banter and shook his head amusingly and was unable to stop the small, faint smile from forming on his usual stoic face.

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AN: Next chapter: we'll learn a little bit more about Michi but it won't be for another 5 or 6 chapters until her past is completely revealed.


	9. The Challenge

**AN: Time for a break from writing my astronomy paper.  
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**Chapter Nine – The Challenge  
**

She bobbed her head up and down to a random tune that was stuck in her head as she poured herself a hot cup of coffee.  
Sakura walked out and jumped in surprise, "Oh! What are you doing up so early, Michi?"  
"Good morning, Sakura! You didn't expect it did you... considering how I practically inhaled the bottle of sake last night."  
Sakura chuckled, "No ill effects huh?"  
"It was just one tiny bottle. Besides I'm an early riser anyway. You're off to the hospital now?"  
"Yup. I have to go or else I'll be late. I'll see you later."

"Wait! You can't go without breakfast. Lucky for you, I woke up early and made this," she handed Sakura a small cup of prepared breakfast.  
"You woke up to make this?"  
"Of course; all right, I'll see you tonight... I'll cook dinner."  
Sakura smiled; her new roommate cooks... unlike that Ino, "That sounds awesome!" she waved good-bye and left.

After Sakura's departure, Michi plopped onto the couch trying to figure out what to do. She considered searching for Kakashi and catch up with him but she thought better of it. If the Hyuga saw her with him again, he'd figure out her identity sooner than she anticipated.

What he didn't know was that she was among one of the youngest shinobis to ever become an ANBU Black Ops leader at the tender age of 16. While she had no major noble blood like that of the Hyuga's or the Uchiha's, she did come from a minor noble clan and was considered a genius.

She was one of the most successful assassins that had ever come out of Konoha; known for killing her victims swiftly and silently and then disappearing without a trace. And while she was no Ibiki, her medical knowledge and skills allowed her to excel in the area of torture: mentally, emotionally, and physically.

She was both feared and revered throughout the ninja world and throughout the ranks of the ANBU forces. She curiously pondered if he had heard of her during his time with the ANBU. Although, she would only be referred to by her alias, 'Ri' and not her given name.

She sighed out of boredom and picked up a magazine that was left on Sakura's coffee table. She flipped through the pages not paying any attention to the words until she realized she had been looking at it upside down and backwards. She sighed frustratingly and threw the magazine back on to the table and began tapping her fingers on her thighs. Realizing she spent all morning fixing Sakura breakfast, she hadn't eaten breakfast herself so she got up to the door to leave.

When she opened the door, she came face to face with one Hyuga Neji whose hand was still up in the air, ready to knock on the door.  
"Oh, thank goodness you're here! I was bored out of my damn mind! Now you can join me for breakfast. Let's go," she didn't even let him answer or agree to her suggestion as she pulled him along.

"Shouldn't you lock the door?" he asked sternly.  
She stopped in her tracks, "Oh, right. I haven't had the need to lock doors in a _really_ long time," she turned back to lock the door and then proceeded to drag him behind her, "I can walk just fine you know!"

She ignored his protests and led him to Ami's, the best place to go for breakfast. "Ami's?" He asked questionably. "Is there a problem?" she asked.  
"No. I just haven't been here for a while."

They took their seats across from each other. He was calmly looking through the menu which irritated her to no end.

Finally, she impatiently asked, "You're a ninja; an ANBU captain no less. Why haven't you asked me about myself?"

He put the menu down and honestly answered, "You saved me. I don't see any reason not to think of you as an ally... for now. Don't confuse that with trust; I don't trust you just yet. I don't know enough about you. But I do plan on finding out more about you. But I have manners. I'm not going to poke and prod you for information though. I plan to take my time."  
She rolled her eyes at his diplomatic answer, "You're not in the least bit curious?"

He leaned back in his seat, "Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm very curious. Since the moment I met you. But I'm a patient man. All good things come with time. And I'll take my time finding out all I can about you."  
She sighed, "Weirdo," she muttered.

Amused, he leaned across the table, "And what would you have me do?"  
She smirked and leaned in toward him as well, their faces mere inches apart, "If it were me, I would be scheming on ways to get the information out of me."

He chuckled deeply, "Well it's a good thing you're not me then."  
Their breakfast came and ate slowly and made plans for the rest of the day.  
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He guided her to the training grounds where they were met by Lee and Tenten. "Yosh, Neji-kun! You were gone for over two weeks. Did you run into trouble? Are you okay? Were you in need of my help?"  
Neji sighed at his overeager friend, "I'm fine Lee. Did you just start training?"

"Yea, we just got here. Lee had to finish his laps first," Tenten replied exasperatedly.  
Neji looked over at Lee, "How many laps this time?"  
The one in the green jumpsuit saluted, "250!" He then noticed Neji didn't come alone, "Neji-kun, who is your friend?"

Michi introduced herself, "Terakami Michi. Nice to meet you."  
"I am Rock Lee and this is Tenten, my teammate."

"I didn't know you had friends, Neji," Tenten amusingly said.  
"I have you two knuckleheads don't I?" Neji shot back at her. "Where are your students?"

"We gave them the day off. Lee in particular has been working them to no end," Tenten said disapprovingly. "Gai-sensei trained me the same way! It is only natural that I train them the way I was trained."

Michi looked at the two shinobis; they were both wearing the traditional Konoha shinobi outfit and the jounin vest, "You're both jounin instructors?" The two nodded, "We were assigned to them three weeks ago. Their youthful disposition is better than yours ever were," Lee boasted of his students while directing the last comment at Neji.

"If you recall, I never had a youthful disposition. Only you and that idiot are obsessed with 'the sparkling power of youth,'" Neji muttered.

Michi however, scolded him, "Don't be so mean. I think it's admirable that Lee cares and praises his students the way he does. They'll thank him when they get older," Lee thanked her for her vote of confidence. She then crossed her arms; "I'd like to see you be a mentor to those kids. You wouldn't last a day."

He balked at her public rebuff and challenge, "You seem to forgot, I told you I'm a very patient man. I can train a bunch of snot nosed brats if I wanted too."  
Her eyes sparkled in amusement, "That's an interesting choice of words. You do realize that when you were their age, you were a 'snot nosed brat' too, right?"

She was making him look like a fool in front of his friends.  
And judging from the smile on her face, she was enjoying it.  
And the smiles on Lee and Tenten's faces told him they were enjoying it as well.

Well, he wasn't going to let her have anymore fun at his expense, "You're right. I was a snot nosed brat when I was that age. Hell, I was even an arrogant asshole. You can ask Lee and Tenten and they'll confirm it. That's why I said it because I know it to be true," he was finally admitting that he was an arrogant jerk back then and just hoped his teammates wouldn't hold it over his head for the rest of his mortal life.

But that's not to say that he still isn't an arrogant jerk because let's face it, he still is. It's just less pronounced nowadays as opposed to back when they were mere genin.

He was purposely ruining her fun but she wasn't going to let him off easily. She had big plans and quickly plotted her next move, "Well, you're lucky you're an ANBU captain or else I'd challenge you to actually become a jounin instructor."  
"And why can't I?"

She was going to give too much of herself away, but said it anyway, "ANBU captains are tied to their position. They are to be on call at all times and babysitting a bunch of kids really puts a restriction on that."

Neji scrunched his eyebrows to feign distress when really he was relieved.

Knowing he was only putting on a show for his comrades, she snapped her fingers as if a golden idea struck her, "Actually, I'd like to see you put your money where your mouth is. A week. I'll give you a week."  
"A week for what?"

She turned to Lee, "Lee, do you think it's possible for Neji here to train your students for a week?"

Neji was shocked and stuttered but Michi interrupted, "Not backing out of a challenge are we?" She taunted, "Absolutely not. Lee, I'll train those rug rats of yours for a week. I'll show you Terakami. There is nothing in this world that I _can't_ do."

Her eyes gleamed and she grinned, "Wonderful. You can start tomorrow."  
"You are on!"

They were interrupted when a servant appeared and told Neji that the Hiashi requested his presence. Neji bid them good-bye and told Michi he'll find her afterward.

When Neji left, Michi turned to Lee, "Sorry for high jacking your students without waiting for permission," she apologized when she realized that Lee hadn't even agreed to the arrangement.

"Oh, it is fine. I, myself am curious as to how Neji will perform as a sensei. I have the utmost confidence in him. But as for who will be a better sensei, I know I will defeat him!" an exuberant Lee shouted with a thumbs up.

"Is he always like this?" Michi asked an annoyed Tenten. Tenten dropped her head in embarrassment, "Unfortunately, yes"

"Brilliant," Michi murmured.  
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AN:** The meaning of Michi's alias:** 莉 (Ri) is 'jasmine' in Japanese (or at least that's what the 'behind the name' website tells me). And the significance of that will be explained later.


	10. Ready, Set, Go

**AN: Ah, all that left of that astronomy paper is proofreading and revising... on to my next paper... if only my damn teammates would email me their parts! Growl**

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**Chapter Ten – Ready, Set, Go!**

Michi, Neji, Tenten, and Lee all met the next day on the training grounds with Lee and Tenten's students trailing closely behind them. Lee stood in front of his students and with Neji next to him he informed them, "For the next week, you will be under the tutelage of my long time rival, Hyuga Neji. Now, as my students, I expect you to respect and listen to your new sensei. After all, he is a genius and you can learn a lot from him. Make me proud!"

He turned to Neji and struck up the classic 'good guy' pose with sparkling teeth included, "Neji-kun, I turn them over to you. I trust you to take good care of them!"

Neji grunted at Lee's shenanigans and stepped forward and looked at the faces of the three brats – erm, three new students. He clapped his hands loudly and said, "Okay kids! How about we introduced ourselves?"

The three young genin simply looked at him as if he were an alien, "We're 12 years old, not four," the young boy said snootily.

Michi exploded into raucous laughter and she clutched her belly as her body shook, "Oh, oh, ha... ha... that's brilliant!" She gasped for air through her words. Her laughter only increased when she noticed Neji glaring at her, "I'd like to see you do better!" he hissed through clenched teeth.

She slowed down her heaving breaths and got it to a steady pace, "Okay. New rules: for one week we'll see who the better sensei is," turning to Tenten she asked, "Can I borrow your kids for a week?"

Michi could tell Tenten was enjoying watching her former teammate squirm, "Be my guest. And kick his ass."  
Neji glared at his former teammate and now _former__ friend_ as well, "Why are you encouraging her?!"  
"Seems like fun," Tenten shrugged her shoulders and smiled innocently at his discomfort.

"Oh, is this a competition? I want to compete too! I have to beat my rival!"  
"Calm down, Lee. This isn't a competition for you. It's between them. She's challenging him remember?"  
Lee's head drooped, "Oh, right."

"Then it's settled. We'll teach them some of the most basic genin skills and Lee and Tenten will test them at the end of this week and we'll see who the better sensei is," Lee and Tenten nodded in agreement. Michi turned to Neji, "Are those terms acceptable to you?"

While no one else noticed it, Michi did; Neji's left eye twitched slightly "Sounds reasonable," he hissed. They shook hands as acceptance to the terms of agreement and Neji jerked her arm, "What about the _other_ terms?"  
She looked confused, "What other terms?"  
"What do I get when I win and what do you get if you win?"  
She grinned flirtatiously, "**_If_** you win, you can do whatever you want to me. And I get to do whatever I want **_when_** I win."

He swallowed at her propositions and the suggestive tone in her voice, "Great." _Did I just... **squeak**, _he screamed at himself.

Tenten snickered at her former teammate's embarrassment, "This ought to be good," she guffawed. Tenten _loved_ every moment of this. Never in her ten plus years that she had known him had she _ever_ seen him become so unraveled and shaken.

And hearing him _squeak_? Well, that was brilliant and _classic_ and decided right then and there that she was going to enjoy being friends with this new girl.

Michi smirked when she heard his voice rise up an octave. She turned her attention to the confused genins, "Don't worry, you stick with me and you'll learn basic genin skills. However, since you don't know me and I don't know you, why don't you tell me something about yourselves?"

Neji looked away, what the fuck was he thinking when he agreed to this? He remembered how difficult he was when he was this age... what made him think that kids nowadays were any different? He stupidly dug himself a hole and he didn't have a chance to get himself out of.

He turned to look at the snot nosed kids again, "So... what's your name?" He asked the young boy who was trying to balance a blade of grass on his nose, "My name is Obi Taro."

That was how he spent the rest of the day; listening to the three genin ramble on and on and on about themselves.

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It was a tiring day for him; the two boys on his team didn't get along very well and argued with one another over every... _little...** stupid... detail**_!

'Your kunai holster should be on your left leg,' Taro would shout.  
'Not if you're right handed! And your scroll pouch should be in the back!' Hibiki argued back.

And the lone girl, Emi, didn't help matters either, 'Your forehead protector should be worn this way!'

He rubbed his temples trying to stop the oncoming headache, "Bad day?" Michi taunted.  
He glared at her for what seemed like the 100th time today, "You are evil."  
"They tell me that I'm the devil incarnate," she wispily quipped.

"What do you think you're doing? You really think you can train a bunch of kids?"  
"Why not? You can't be sure that I can't."  
His head snapped up, "You... you've done this before?"

He didn't doubt that she was a skilled fighter and jutsu user. He didn't doubt that she was a ninja either. But she didn't wear any shinobi clothes nor did she have any items on her persons that indicated if she was from a particular village much less give any clues to her past experiences.

She shrugged her shoulders, "You'd never know. Can't judge a book by its cover right?"  
He ran his hands through his hair. She patted him on his shoulder, "Come on, let's go get some dinner. My treat."

He dragged his feet after her; pouting like the wise ass, booger faced punks he just spent the entire day with.

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He flopped onto his bed and thought about what had happened. He couldn't believe how easily riled he was and how easily he was suckered into this bet with her. And the kids seemed intent on making it as difficult as possible.

He was going to lose... badly.

He smothered a pillow on his face and screamed into it, "Why do I let her get to me like that? Why do I have to prove her wrong? What the fuck is wrong with me?"

He debated with himself on the possible reasons to his malfunction when it came to Michi and sleep eluded him that night.

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AN: Looks like Neji is in for the time of his life... get your cameras ready, this should be interesting


	11. Your Ass Is Mine!

**AN: Happy Thanksgiving! Time for an update. Read and review!  
**

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**Chapter Eleven – Your Ass... Is Mine!**

He woke up early next morning and remembered that there were six days left in his little bet with Michi. He was hoping that it was a nightmare but no matter how hard he pinched, he was already awake.

And it wasn't going away.

He lied in bed a little longer than usual, yelling internally, _what the heck could they possibly learn in six days? How am I supposed to teach them something substantial in **six** days?_

Teaching these kids is going to be like teaching a new born baby how to walk _and_ talk in a week.

He had a strong, nagging feeling that he was going to lose... badly but that wasn't going to stop him from trying. He had once told her that he didn't know when or how to quit... he was going to show her why that is. So he dragged himself out of bed, showered, brushed his teeth, dressed, and got ready for the long (_long_) day ahead.

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He found his three new students passed out on the grass.

He cleared his throat to get their attention but failed miserably. He tried several more times to no avail so he finally resorted to shouting, "Time to get up!"

So much for being a patient man.

The three genin scrambled up to their feet, "Ohayo, Neji-sensei," they greeted despondently in discord monotone.  
He was irritated that these kids were unresponsive around him but were full of passion, joy, and energy when they were with Lee.

_I guess it really does matter who you surround yourself with_, he thought irritably.

"If I remember correctly, in my first week of training, Gai taught us chakra control. Or well, at least he taught Tenten that. I already knew how to control chakra and Lee doesn't use chakra," he was interrupted when Taro said, "At you done reliving your childhood, old man? We'd like to learn something now."

Neji gritted his teeth and restrained himself from choking the snotty brat, "Fine then. Your first task is to climb that tree," he pointed to the massive tree on his left.  
The three kids scoffed, "Piece of cake!"

"Without the use of your arms," Neji added.  
The jaws dropped simultaneously, "Are you crazy?"  
"That's impossible."

All three clamored at the bizarre and absolutely absurd request from their (psychotic) sensei.  
Why couldn't he teach them some taijutsu like Lee-sensei?

Neji crossed his arms and smirk at the three kids, "What's the matter? Are you telling me that you can't do a simple task like this? A five year old can perform this exercise."

"Oh, yea?" Hibiki asked doubtfully.  
"Oh, yea," Neji confirmed.  
"Then why don't _you_ do it?" Emi challenged.

"My pleasure. Pay attention little kiddies because I'm only going to do this _once_," he directed his chakra to his feet and began walking up the tree until he reached the first branch.

He looked down at the three of them and saw their faces glow in awe. He mentally patted himself on the back; he finally gained their attention and respect. From the tree, he shouted to them, "See if you can do it." All three excitedly approached the tree but when they tried it, they all fell flat on their backs.

Neji chuckled at their enthusiasm and offered some advice, "Trying getting a running start until you get used to it."

They tried once again but landed with a thud on their butts again. Neji grimaced and shook his head and leapt out of the tree, "Look, I'm sure you guys learned _something_ about chakra control in the academy. I mean, if you didn't you wouldn't be genin. All you have to do is concentrate and force your chakra to your feet. Once you've done that, make a run at the tree and see how far up you can get."

They nodded and tried again. Neji leaned against a tree and watched at the three of them tried again and again.

_This isn't as hard as I thought. Maybe I underestimated them. I can do this... piece of cake. Terakami, prepare to lose._

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She thought she should start by teaching them how to recognize genjutsu and how to dispel them. After all, her father had taught that to her right off the bat ever since she expressed the tiniest interest in the shinobi life. Because of that, she was a master of genjutsu; excelling at using, detecting, and dispelling such techniques.

In addition, Tenten told her that that was what she was teaching them anyway... eventually... _after_ weapons training.

Juro, Izumi, and Kenji looked attentively at their new instructor, "Now, I know that the academy taught you what genjutsu is. I am also aware that Tenten-sensei... was planning on teaching it soon. Can you tell me what you've learned about genjutsu?"

Izumi raised her hand, "Iruka-sensei just told us that genjutsu are illusionary techniques."  
"Right, has anyone said anything about recognizing it or dispelling it?"

The three shook their heads, "Okay, then that's what we'll work on today. First and foremost, you must know when you are trapped in a genjustu. We are going to learn how to recognize that you entered a genjutsu _before_ you are fully trapped. However, it's not going to be easy. And not everyone can recognize they're trapped in one until it is too late. But luckily, there are ways to dispel the technique. And we'll learn about them as we go along."

Izumi, Kenji, and Juro nodded their heads, "Good then... let's begin."

The kids looked around curiously, waiting for further instruction but none came. They stared at each other, bewildered and turned to Michi but discovered she was gone. "Did sensei leave?" Juro asked.  
"I-I don't know. She was just there."  
"Hey guys? Do you smell that?"  
"Smell what, Kenji?"

"It's coming from over there..." The three genin rushed over past the bushes saw what the smell was emanating from: there in front of them was a mountain of food. The three genin salivated and their eyes gleamed as they saw ramen, yakiniku, sushi, curry, donburi, itamemono, and all kinds of sweets. 

They rushed toward the delicious smelling food, pushing and shoving at each other and began shoveling it in their mouths. Michi-sensei had told them not to eat anything this morning and they were _starving_.

They ate as much as their small mouths could take and were quickly becoming full. But slowly, the food began to disappear and the hunger returned. When everything was gone, they saw Michi standing in front of them, scratching her head, "That's not what I was expecting."

She sighed and signaled them to sit, "You must pay attention to your surroundings. You have to know _all_ sounds, smells, sights, touch, and tastes in your surrounding. If there is something that doesn't belong, no matter how real it feels; assume you're in a genjutsu. Would there _really_ be a spread of food like this in the middle of the training grounds?"

She took a breath and noticed they stared at her intently, "You have to learn to ignore your needs and desires. You were all hungry because I told you not to eat breakfast. And I did that for a reason: so I could use this genjutsu to see if you could resist your hunger. To see if you were able to ignore that hunger and realize you were trapped in an illusion. Those who are under the influence of genjutsu _usually_ see and feel what they want; although advanced genjutsu users are capable of manipulation. You must be able to separate perception from reality. Obviously, you weren't able to do that today but that's okay. Not everyone gets it. That's why we'll practice with it and afterward I'll teach you how to counter a genjutsu. You guys ready to try again?"

They nodded enthusiastically. Michi rubbed her hands together and grinned diabolically, "Good..."

_Neji, you are _**so**_ getting your ass handed to you._

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AN: Those kids are a riot!


	12. Judgment Day

**AN: Finals are over! Relief and freedom is finally here and as a reward, my body is sore all over. Finally, here's a new chapter. Enjoy!**

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**Chapter Twelve – Judgment Day**

Today was the day, it was the end of the week; judgment day has arrived.

After a week of nonstop training, Tenten and Lee outlined rules and regulations for the 'test course.' Lee was adamant in testing their taijutsu skills. When he wouldn't stop ranting and raving about it, Tenten effectively shut him up by threatening him with the use of her weapons. She explained to him that they weren't being taught taijutsu and after much debate, Lee relented.

When both teams, along with their respective interim sensei arrived, decked out in matching colors and uniforms to signify unity, Tenten revealed the requirements of the test course, "These are individual missions that will culminate to a team mission. Here is what you are to accomplish; one: Recognize genjutsu and after dispelling it, locate the chest. Inside it, there will be a flag. Retrieve it and then pass it to your next teammate."

Lee then took over the explanations, "Two: Using only chakra, run across the river and up the tree to retrieve the flag at the top. Pass _both_ of the retrieved flags to next teammate."

"Finally, three: Use the clues on the previous two flags to find the location of the final flag. After you retrieved the last flag, all three team members and their respective provisional sensei are to present _all_ flags to coordinator; either me or Lee."

Lee then continued, "You must complete **_all_** three parts and you may choose who among you will do which stage of the test."  
"But remember, you will be evaluated by which team accomplishes their tasks better. You will not be judged on how **_fast_** you finish but how **_well_** you utilize your skills. You can pick who does which part of the test now," Tenten finished.

Michi huddled around her team, "Okay, Juro, you were the best at detecting and dispelling genjutsu so you'll do the first leg of the test. Izumi you have the best chakra control and maintenance so you'll do the second leg of the test. And Kenji, no offense, but you're kind of a geek so you'll be able to put the clues together. Do you agree with this arrangement?" The three of them nodded determinately. "Good. Now go out there, kick some ass, and make me proud!"

Neji stood in front of his team, "Hibiki, you'll take care of dispelling genjutsu. Taro, you'll run the chakra control and Emi, you will put the clues together and bring it all home. How does that sound to you?"

"Like a plan," Taro grinned at his sensei.

"Okay guys, we've trained all week for this. And I must admit, at first I was a little unsure about this arrangement. I thought you were a bunch of snot nosed little brats intent on making my life miserable."

The three genin looked at their sensei wide mouthed and disheartened. Neji continued, "But after spending this week with you, I can say that it's truly been a pleasure. No matter what happens, I'm proud of all you've accomplished," his voice then dropped to a low conspiring tone, "Now let's go out there and show them where they can shove it."

"Yea!" the three of them excitedly shouted.

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They walked through the village despondently.

Trailing behind them were the six genin; also walking dejectedly.

Lee and Tenten's final ruling was that **_neither team won_**.

Izumi was unable to complete her part of the exam; the chakra control test thus disqualifying the entire team. Then Hibiki was disqualified because he was unable to recognize and dispel genjutsu properly.

So both teams lost and Neji and Michi walked through the village brooding over their failure.

"Neji! Michi-san! How'd it go?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"Yea, who won?" Sakura wanted to know as well.

"Oddly enough, I'm curious too," Shikamaru added.

Two lifeless eyes peered up, "No one won."

"Lee and Tenten disqualified them both for not properly completing their tasks," Michi explained to their two friends.  
"They didn't do what was required of them."

"We're sorry sensei," all six voices quietly whispered.

Neji and Michi turned to the crestfallen faces, "It's not your fault."

They had been so wrapped up in themselves that they nearly forgotten the kids that were involved. It started out as a bet to see who's better but in the end, it was the kids who truly mattered; not some petty wager.

"She's right. If it's anyone's fault, it's **_ours_**. I was so focused on chakra control that I didn't adequately cover genjutsu and dispelling techniques."  
"And I focused so much on genjutsu that I didn't pay enough attention to chakra control. If anyone should be sorry, it's us. We did you a disservice by not covering **_all_** the basics."

"But luckily, you have two willing and capable instructors to teach you what we were unable to."  
"That's right. And you'll learn far more from Tenten and Lee than you ever would with us."

"And besides," Neji started as he ruffled their heads, "We're proud of you. And you should be proud of yourselves. You didn't give up even when you were struggling. You made it to the finish line and that's all that matters."

"And you can't always expect to win. Or else what will there be left to learn?" Michi added, "Right?"

The six small heads nodded; no longer dejected or despondent. "Now, go find your senseis and give them hell," Michi whispered.

Together, they eagerly shouted, "Yea," as they scattered off in all different directions trying to find Lee and Tenten.

"That was the weirdest thing I've ever seen. Did you _all_ witness Neji being nice? Like a human being to a bunch of kids?" Sakura asked in amazement.

"Don't get used to it. You'll never see me act like a human being ever again."

"You know, you're pretty good at this sensei stuff. Maybe you should think about pursuing it," Sakura observed.

Michi raised an eyebrow, "Don't get me wrong those kids were great. They were good kids an all and I had fun teaching them... for a week. But to ask me to train them day in and day out... that's just not my cup of tea."

Neji chuckled, "I agree with her. They only listen to you when they want to or when you show them something 'cool.' I mean yeah, at the end of the day I earned their respect and they looked up to me. And that felt nice and all but still, no, thank you. I'll stick with the suicidal missions. Training a bunch of 12 year olds takes a lot out of you. This week has been more tiring than _any_ mission I've _ever_ been on."

"Agreed."

Sakura and Naruto laughed while Shikamaru merely shrugged in indifference, "Well then, let's go get something to eat to celebrate your... non-victories."

Michi's eyes lit up, "I could go for some food. I'm starving. I was too wound up to eat this morning."  
"Yea, I noticed. I thought that was a little weird that you left the apartment without eating," Sakura giggled. "Believe me, that is **_never_** going to happen again," Michi exclaimed.

The five friends made their way to the Ichiraku Ramen Bar talking merrily along the way.


	13. A Past Revealed

**AN: Finals are over but my vacation is not very going very well... jury duty is such drag... and i need to return tomorrow... bollocks!  
**

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**Chapter Thirteen – A Past Revealed  
**

She was quietly meditating on the training grounds. She sat on the tree stump with her legs crossed in a vibrant, velvety, dark blue kimono. She concentrated on her surroundings, trying to visually mapping out the location of each target. She's done this before but she's been out of commission for way too long and took time to become reacquainted again.

Running various scenarios in her head, she finally picked a viable solution and stood up. She launched herself off the stump and tore off her kimono and revealed that she was wearing a ninja outfit.

She drew eight kunais and hurled them in different directions. The kunai bounced off each other and eventually embedded themselves on their intended targets. She landed back gracefully on the stump and without looking, flung one last kunai into the tree and waited.

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He woke up early in hopes of getting some early morning mediation and possibly some training in. But he didn't expect to see her there as well. He hid in the nearest tree and watched her brow furrow in concentration. He concluded that she was meditating and was about to interrupt her when he saw her leap into the air and tearing off her kimono.

He watched in shock as he saw her graceful, lean body encased in dark, blue modified ANBU uniform. Her top was cut into a halter and her hair was tightly pulled back to revealed her bare back.

He was mesmerized by her body; her breasts, which were neither too big nor too small and her petite waist that tapered off to the most luscious curve of the hips and buttocks. The dark, tight garment elongated her legs and he wondered what it would feel like to have those strong thighs wrapped around his hips while they...

He felt an unmistakable tightening in his pants but his head shot up when he felt a kunai hurled in his direction. He budge from his position because he knew that it would miss; narrowly but it still sliced a strand of his hair off.

"Come out, come out, where ever you are. I know you're there. It isn't nice to spy. And you've done it three times already." He jumped out of the tree and approached her, "Three times?"  
"There was that first night at the cottage, that night when I bumped into Kakashi, and then just now."

She had known known all along that he was watching her that first night... _great_, he thought amusingly. "Thanks for chucking that kunai at me. A brush with near death is just what I need in the morning... Better than coffee."  
"You and I both know that it was going to completely miss you... except for exactly two strands of your hair."

"Speaking of which, do you know how long it takes for me to grow my hair? You come along and lop off two strands."  
She chuckled, "You do have nicer hair than most. Hell, you have nicer hair than me."  
He curled his finger beckoning her closer, "I'll let you in on a secret," he whispered in a conspiring tone, "It's not the shampoo you use. It's all about the conditioner." She promptly threw her head back and laughed at that, "Please tell me you're joking!"  
He shook his head, "I am. It's just good genes."  
"Lucky bastard."

They sighed and sat next to each other, "So why didn't you tell me?" Neji finally asked.  
She scoffed, "Don't pin this on me! I gave you plenty of chances to ask and I would've told you had you asked. But you didn't so I wasn't going to volunteer that information to you."

He surrendered to avoid anymore bickering from her, "So... Konoha ANBU huh?"  
"ANBU Black Ops squad leader to be exact."  
"I've been with ANBU for over five years. How come I've never seen you before?"  
"That would probably be because I left Konoha five years ago."

Then it dawned on him, "You've been gone from Konoha for five years. Because... of your father?"  
She sighed softly, "Yea. My father had just been killed during a mission. I needed to get away for a while. I didn't intend to stay away for so long but once I left I couldn't seem to bring myself back. I mean I wanted to but I wasn't sure if I was ready."  
"What changed your mind?"  
She smiled, "You did."  
He was stunned. He didn't expect her to say that, "Me?"

She nodded, "You. When I rescued you, I could tell you were from Konoha; and an ANBU agent no less. I can recognize my own clothing. But I was hoping that maybe other hidden villages adopted similar uniforms during those five years. Then you woke up and I saw those eyes of yours... Oh, how I hoped that there was someone, _anyone_ in the world with eyes like those. Then you **_told_** me you were a Konoha shinobi. And well, that was that. I decided that night that I was going to come home with you."

She stood up and shoved her hands in her pockets, "Figured that it was about time I stopped farting around and come home. So I came home."  
"That's why you didn't bring anything. You were planning on staying even before we got back."

She stared off in the distance and felt him approach her, "But that's not the whole story."  
"I've told you that my father was killed during a mission... but he wasn't the only casualty. He was with his best friend; his partner... Hyuga Haru. They were both ambushed on their way home from a mission and..." She took a shaky breath, "I'm sorry."

His head shot up in surprise at the unexpected apology, "What for? It wasn't your fault."  
"My father was leading that mission–"  
"It wasn't your father's fault. These things happen in this line of work," he interrupted.  
"Regardless, I shouldn't have left the way I did. I was a coward for running away the way I did. I'm the only one left in my family and I just couldn't face yours. I didn't even apologize or offer my condolences before I bolted."

"You were in mourning. No one blames you for what happened, Michi."

"I'm sorry," she looked up and Neji softened and that tug at the center of his being returned, her eyes filled with tears, threatening to spill over.

He took her by the shoulders and felt her trembling. He lifted her chin to get her to look at him and then took her hands in his, "On the behalf of my family, your apology is accepted."

Her tears fell and laughed quietly at his gesture, "Thank you," she hugged him tightly with gratefulness.

He stood stiffly at her sudden embrace but relaxed into it. He rubbed her back to comfort her and felt the soft skin of her exposed back. He wondered if the rest of her body was as soft as this but when he heard her sniffle, he mentally kicked himself and scolded, _get your head out of the gutter! What the fuck is the matter with you? She's upset and you're imagining what it would be like to bed her!_

They broke away and she sniffled, "Sorry... I've made your shirt all wet."  
"Don't worry about it... I've got plenty more just like this."  
Wanting to detract attention to her sob fest, she wiped her tears and asked, "So how long did it take you to figure out that I was a Konoha shinobi?"

"I didn't until just now. I always knew that you were a ninja. You saved me and you know medical ninjutsu. But I couldn't figure out what village you were from. Although, looking back now, I should've figured it out sooner. I mean you lived in the outskirts of the Fire Country, you tensed up when I mentioned I was from Konoha, and you seemed to know your way around the village better than most. But I guess hindsight's 20/20, right?"

She grinned at him, "Wait until I tell Tsunade that you weren't able to figure it out."  
His eyes widened in shock, "The Hokage knew about this?"  
"Of course, she gave me a week before announcing my return to the ANBU forces."  
"Unbelievable. Who else knew?"

"Probably Kakashi."  
"I was right about you," at her inquiring look, he clarified, "You're a horrible girl."  
She laughed loudly at that, "That's what everyone says. Glad you feel the same way."

He shook his head at her, "There's something else you should know about me. I have a ... certain reputation among the ANBU ranks and shinobi world. Care to find out what it is?"  
He knitted his eyebrows, "Is this another challenge?"  
"You could think of it that way, sure. I'll give you a week to find out what it is."

"And the terms?"  
"Will be the same as before. Should you succeed within the week, you may do whatever you please with me. If not, well let's just say I'm going to have a lot of fun."  
"A week?"

"A week," she confirmed, "Look through the library records and the ANBU scrolls at the headquarters. But I suggest you get started right away. It's a lot of information to sort through... that is if you know where to look. And if you need any help, just ask."

"That won't be necessary."  
"Don't be too sure. It won't be as easy as it sounds."  
They were then interrupted by one of the Hyuga servants, "Neji-sama, I apologize for interrupting but Lord Hiashi requests your presence immediately."  
He sighed, "I'll be right there."

"Hiashi-sama requires your presence quite a bit."  
"Yeah, Hanabi is training to be a jounin. I... 'volunteered' to help out."  
She chuckled, "You should get going then."  
"Yeah, I'll find you later?"  
"There are only a handful of places I'd be. You'll find me."

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After her conversation with Neji, she separately made her way toward the Hyuga compound. Even though Neji had forgiven her, she still felt compelled to apologize to the head of the family.

Neji and Hanabi were too busy trying to pummel each other into a bloody pulp that they didn't seem to detect the intruder.

She quickly located Hiashi and furiously apologized to him. Luckily, Hiashi-sama was more than forgiving. He understood the perils you undertake as a ninja and knew of what grief can propel you to do. So he readily forgave her.

After that, she went to the cemetery with two bouquets of flowers and a large bottle of sake. She carefully placed the flowers on the graves and poured out a small amount of sake in a sake dish.

"Sorry I didn't come sooner. I'm sorry I was gone for so long. I swear I meant to come home sooner but... I don't know..." she sighed heavily, "I miss you so much. I love you, dad." She wiped her tears from her face, "Mom, I hope you're taking care of dad. God knows he needs someone to look after him... keep him out of trouble."

She placed the sake dish to her lips when a small butterfly landed on the rim of the dish, "I don't think it's a good idea for you to be drinking that. After all, I don't think that that small little body of yours will be able to handle liquor."

"I've been looking for her for the past two hours."  
"Oh apparently, she's been getting drunk."  
"Well thank you for looking out after her."  
"Not a problem. I used to be a... butterfly sitter."

She could tell that he was amused despite his face being hidden behind sunglasses, "I don't think we've met."  
"That's because we haven't. Terakami Michi."  
"Aburame Shino. Sorry about the intrusion."  
"It's no problem."  
"So, sake in the morning? And at a cemetery?"

"It was dad's favorite. He used to let me drink it when I was kid."  
"As a kid?" he asked shockingly.  
"He did it to discourage me from drinking in the future. And I hated it as a kid... but as you can see, it didn't work too well."

The butterfly flapped her wings and took off once again, "Looks like the chase is on once again."  
She smiled at his dedication, "It was nice to meet you. I'll see you around," he said.

She nodded, "We most certainly will," she watched as he walked through the tall grass and bushes trying to follow the small, young butterfly.

After cleaning the gravestones, she looked at the sun and remembered that she promised Sakura that they'd have lunch.

She turned to leave and left the bottle of sake behind, thanked her parents and promising to visit them again soon.

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AN: And there you have it, as promised: Michi's past revealed... at least the wheres and whys. More to come next chapter. I hope you enjoyed it! Until next time, i bid you good night minions!

Yes! I said minions!


	14. An Ahha! Moment

**AN: I am back! It's been a longgg hiatus but I'm back!  
**

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**Chapter Fourteen – An Ah-ha! Moment**

It had been six full days since he accepted her challenge. He poured and scoured through the records at the ANBU headquarters as well as the library. He even recruited his cousin, Hinata, who worked at the library to help him.

But thus far, all they've found out was that she was the genius daughter of a former ANBU captain of a lower noble clan. She graduated top of her class when she was eight and became a chuunin at the age of ten. By the time she was 12, she was a jounin and an ANBU agent at 14. She was promoted to ANBU Black Ops leader at 16 but then two years later, she disappeared. And that is where all written records of her ended.

It was a bright and early morning as he walked through ANBU's headquarters when he heard a couple of his subordinates whisper to one another, "I heard Ri has resurfaced."

"Me too. But no one has seen her yet."

"I don't think you want to see her. If you see her, then that means you'll end up dead. Besides, no one knows who she is anyway. Only a handful of the older ANBU members know who she _really_ is. And those old coots are either dead or retired."

A third subordinate chimed in, "Oh, come on! You can't really believe she exists do you?"  
"You don't?" The other two asked incredulously.  
"I don't believe in anything I haven't seen with my own eyes. They're just stories."

Neji walked off thinking about what he had overheard. In his five years with the ANBU forces, he had heard stories about the mysterious and elusive 'Ri.' But he never took them seriously; merely dismissing it as a myth to glorify the ANBU forces and boost morale. He never paid much attention to the stories and now, after listening to his subordinates, he had to admit that he was intrigued.

He wondered about the disappearance and subsequent reappearance of 'Ri' and wondered if there was a chance that the renowned 'Ri' could be Michi. It was certainly quite a reputation. But he quickly shook that thought out of his head.

The Ri he heard about (when he **_was_** paying attention) was ruthless and feared. Although he had a glimpse of her temper, Michi doesn't give off any of those attributes. But his curiosity won out in the end; he figured that it wouldn't hurt to investigate all of the possibilities.

He returned to the record room and began to look for records with any mention of the name 'Ri.' Surprisingly, there were numerous records; although most of them were just short accounts reported by older captains.

After six long hours in the record room, all he was able to distinguish was that 'Ri' is considered to be _the_ elite assassin in the shinobi world. She had killed important advisors and associates of top feudal lords in various countries who ultimately turned out to be traitors and conspirators plotting to kill or overthrow their respective lords and leaders.

She has also pursued and disposed some of the most dangerous S-Class missing ninjas in the shinobi world with relative ease. She was effective and efficient in her killings; never taking more than a week to finish a mission.

Her nickname came about because after an assassination, the only thing she ever leaves behind as an indicator that she was ever there in the first place, was the scent of jasmine.

She adopted that alias after she had captured and ultimately killed Haraka, an S-Class missing ninja from Suna. Haraka's lone surviving follower spread the moniker like wildfire after hearing his master refer to his would-be executioner by the name. And now, she was forever tagged with the name whether she liked it or not.

He was left alive by Ri because she felt that he wasn't truly evil; he hadn't raised a sword to anyone. He merely tricked and cheated people out of their money to finance Haraka's operations. Thus she handed him over to the police and allowed them to do whatever they saw as fit punishment.

He was lucky not to have encountered her or saw her face because if he had, there was no doubt he would have ended up dead just like so many before him.

And like what his subordinates had said, no one knew of her true identity. Only a handful of her conquests were known, everything else about her was shrouded in secrecy.

Written records concerning Ri also stopped abruptly five years ago; some said she retired and others speculated that she had died. But what fascinated Neji the most was that Ri dropped off the radar exactly the same time Michi disappeared from the village.

Given this new data, he had no choice but to cross reference Michi and Ri to find a correlation between the two. And after another two arduous hours of pouring over the records in front of him, he dashed out of the building in search for Michi.

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"It's generally not a good idea to speak of other people's... hell, even talk about your own genitals."  
"It's not?"  
"It's considered in bad taste."  
"So... I shouldn't talk about Naruto's small penis?"  
"I wouldn't recommend it, no."

He furrowed his brows in deep contemplation, "I shouldn't talk about _anyone's_?"  
"Society frowns upon that. The subject is... touchy and off limits."  
Spotting Neji entering the bar, he asked, "Not even Neji-kun's?"  
She sputtered, "E-especially not Neji-kun's!"

"What about Neji-kun's?"  
'Nothi–"  
"We were talking about your genitals."  
"Excuse-"  
"No, no we were-" she took a deep breath, "Neji, you've met Sai, right?"  
"I've had the unfortunate pleasure, yes." He looked at her and said, "I need to speak to you."

He found her in the bar with Sakura, Shikamaru, Naruto, Sai, and Lee. When he walked in, he saw Sakura and Shikamaru restraining Naruto and when he saw Sai at the table as well, he knew _why_ Naruto looked so livid.

He had a run in with Sai a while back where Sai had tried to make a comment about his... manhood... which ended in Sai being carried away on a stretcher. Ever since then, Sai watched what he said around Neji but it didn't stop him from having momentarily lapses of judgment.

He took her by her arm and dragged her behind him. And despite her protests, he didn't stop until they were outside.

"I don't appreciate being manhandled! If you wanted me alone all you had to do was ask."  
He ignored her tirade, "I know who you are!"  
She was slightly surprised but remained composed, "That was quick. I gave you a week and you figured it out in less than that." She crossed her arms and asked, "So, tell me. What have you learned about me?"

"Graduated the academy at the top of your class, ANBU leader at 16, renowned spy in the ninja world; I know all about it," his revealed ambiguously.

"Very good. I must say, I'm impressed. So what gave my identity away?"  
"I am a genius, afterall. I have ways of putting things together."

She was skeptical but knowingly allowed herself to be baited, (why not throw the guy a bone and make him think he did something brilliant?) "What do you think of my record? Or should I say Ri's record?"  
He smiled when she mentioned Ri's name but glumly confessed, "Much more impressive in the two years you were squad leader than in my entire _five_ years."

She watched as his eye twitched and lips curve slightly and decided to call him out, "You had no clue did you?"

His smile faltered and admitted, "I had my suspicions. I just could find anything concrete. It's not like there was a giant, flashing neon sign that said 'Michi equals Ri!' I cross referenced your records with Ri's and there were some inconsistencies. You where in one place for your missions and Ri was in another around the same time so that threw me off. I was just... waiting for you to admit it in order to get confirmation."

"Uh huh. How'd you figure out that you needed to research Ri?"  
"I, uh, heard some subordinates whispering about the return of Ri... thought I'd check it out," he mumbled quickly.  
"Oh, right... that would be because of me."  
"You?" his head snapped up in her direction.

"Yeah... I was the one going around the ANBU headquarters spreading rumors about Ri returning into action."  
"W-why would you do that?"  
"I wanted to give you a little shove in the right direction. After all, you didn't seem to be making much progress. And I was right. It was only with my help that propelled you to looking into my _other_ records."

"I would have done just fine on my own," he grumbled.  
She ignored his comment, "So technically, you **_didn't_** find out my true identity. But, I must admit, I'm still impressed with the work you did; and how fast you worked. Even if you did stop half assed."

"I do not do things half assed! You said I could interrogate you which is... kind of what I did."

She smiled and chuckled at his justification, "Come on, genius-san, I'll buy you a drink."

Despite her sarcasm, he mentally patted himself on his back for being able to coax her identity from her. She may have found him out but he still did what he set out to do; she was the one who ultimately blew her own cover.

_So much for a secret identity_, she thought wryly as they spent the rest of the night drinking merrily in the company of their friends.  
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AN: There you have it... Michi's past is revealed. I originally used MacGyver but thought better of it. Hungry, hungry hippo... time for food!

Read, enjoy, and review!


	15. Reintroduction

**AN: Alas, here is chapter 15. These past two chapters have been a fricking riot! It was loads of fun to write (especially Sai -- bless Kishimoto for creating him) and I hope you all enjoyed reading! **

**Enjoy the latest installment and remember as always, review!  
**

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**Chapter Fifteen – Reintroduction**

He groaned as he woke up groggily. His hands flew to his eyes as he tried to rub the sleep out of them.

He then pushed himself up but gasped at the sight he woke up to, "What the hell are you doing here? How the fuck did you get in?"

Her eyes glistened in the sunlight, "You mean you don't remember what happened last night?" She asked as she clutched her chest.

He scratched his head as he tried to remember the events of last night, "Last night?" he quietly mumbled. He looked down and found that he wasn't wearing a shirt. He then lifted the sheets and found he wasn't wearing anything... **_at all_**.

His eyes widened in shock, "Shit! Did you...? Did I...? Did we...?"

She turned away from him; too upset to look at him any more and fanned herself with her hands, "I knew it... you don't remember. How could you not remember?! It... It was so... so **_magical_**!" She wailed as she ran out of the room in near tears; leaving him dumbstruck.

Realizing what had happened and the implications it held; he quickly reached for his pants and hastily pulled them on. In his rush, became entangled with his bed sheets and landed with a loud thump on his hard wood floors, "Ah! Fuck! Wait Michi! Michi! Don't run off so fast!"

He found her sitting on his couch; face buried in her hands, "Do you remember? Anything? Anything at all?" her lower lip quivered.  
"I'm sure it was a... m-magical night but... Uh, why don't you uh, remind me?"  
"It really was, Neji," she looked at him with bright eyes and shaky voice, "I mean after all, it isn't every day that a girl..." she paused and he bit the inside of his lip; waiting for the bomb to drop, "That a girl... out drinks a guy," she finished soberly.

"Shit! Michi, I... wait, what?"

There she sat, fake tears and sobbing gone and nothing but a triumphant smirk plastered on her face, "You heard me, I out drank you. It truly was a magical night. I wish I had it documented."

"What in the fuck happened last night?" he exclaimed loudly.

"Well, after you came to find me last night, I invited you for drinks. Do you remember that?" When he nodded, she continued, "Well, we decided to have a little drinking competition. Long story short, I won, you lost. You passed out. Shikamaru and I had to carry you back here. Remember now? I mean, you should have a killer hangover by now."

He clutched his head and plopped down on the couch, "Oh, believe me. I'm feeling the hangover now," he glanced over to Michi, "Why don't you have a hangover?"

She smiled a little too brightly for his liking, "I have an excellent remedy for a hangover."  
He groaned at her bubbly-ness; it was far too early for this. "How did you get in?"  
She jabbed her thumb toward the door, "I picked the lock. It wasn't hard."  
He nodded then looked at her wearily, "So not-nothing else happened last night?"

She eyes glazed over; as if thinking about it, "No... Nothing at all."  
"How did I wake up naked?"  
She sniggered, "That, I don't know," she grinned at him, "What did you **_think_** happened last night?" she purred.  
He backed up slightly, "Not-nothing."

She chuckled at his reaction and sank back into the couch, "Believe me, if something _did_ happen last night, you can be sure that you would remember it," she grinned as Neji felt the heat in his face begin to rise, "Besides, I don't take advantage of drunken men."

She stood up; wanting to go to the kitchen as he mumbled, "I'm just going to... put on a shirt," he got up hastily and in his rush, his feet got caught in his upturned rug and stumbled forward toward her.

He looked at his hand and his face grew even redder.  
She looked at his face then at his hand and back to his face, "You want to get your hand off my tit?"  
He quickly removed his hand, "Sorry," and hastily rushed to his room; leaving her smirking at his disappearance.

Once in the comforts of his own room, he rushed to his bathroom and shut the door. Leaning against the wall, he took several deep breaths in order to get his heart beat back to normal. He splashed cold water on his face; forcing the inappropriate thoughts out of his mind. When he finally calmed himself down, he realized that he played right into her hands. She had gotten him all riled up for nothing! She purposely misled him. He banged his head on the sink for his stupidity and gullibility.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid! _He berated himself.

He emerged from his room a little while later and discovered her in his kitchen futzing around, "What are you doing?" She signaled him to sit down in which he did, "I'm making you my patented hangover remedy."  
"What's in it?" he asked, "I can't tell you that! It's my secret." She placed a glass filled with a green liquid in front of him, "It's no fine cuisine, but it gets the job done. Just chug it down; quick and painless."

He took up the glass and began to sniff at it, "Don't smell it!" Startled by her outburst, he nearly dropped the glass, "You're not supposed to smell it! Just drink the damn thing!"  
"But..."  
"It smells like crap and tastes worse than crap but you don't go around smelling that shit or it'll just be... even crappier! Now just drink it!"

Neji knit his eyebrows together and slowly lifted the glass to his lips, "Big gulps! Don't you even **_think_** about taking small sips!"  
He quickly let the liquid flow down his throat with one swallow, "Shitting fuck! That shit is rancid!" he coughed violently at the abhorrent concoction.

"I warned you. Now get dressed. You need to get yourself to the ANBU headquarters."  
He heaved at the vile mixture again, "What for?"  
"Tsunade has an announcement or something like that. I'll meet you there."

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"And he woke up... naked?"  
She nodded, "Completely buck ass naked."  
"And I'm supposed to believe that you had _nothing_ to do with it?"  
"I am shocked and appalled that you would even _think_ I had _anything_ to do with that."

Tsunade looked at her with raised brows, "Okay, I admit, that does sound like something I would do. But I swear! I don't know how he ended up naked! I really had nothing to do with it."

"You're still evil for allowing him to think it."  
"And no matter how many times people tell me that, I don't get sick of it. I just couldn't help myself... it was too good of an opportunity to pass up."

They heard the morning chatter grow louder, "Well, it looks like they're all here."  
"Right. Time to go."

Tsunade made her way to the tiny platform at the front of the room, "I apologize for asking you all here so early in the morning. Five years ago, we lost one of the finest ANBU leaders ever. But after a five year hiatus-"

"Sabbatical! It was a sabbatical!" Michi shouted.

Her eye twitched; irritated at the correction, "After a five year **_sabbatical_**, she has returned. Please welcome back Captain Terakami."

The room was filled with gasps as they all tried to clamor to Michi, "You can greet her later! Some of you still have missions to complete!" Tsunade barked loudly.

The spectators quickly dispersed; not wanting to upset the Hokage, but one girl remained, "It's good to have you back, captain."  
Michi smiled, "It's good to be back."

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Read, enjoy, and review!


	16. Time to Work

**AN: A new school session has begun so updates maybe far and few in between. Meanwhile, here's chapter 16. **

**Enjoy the latest installment and remember as always, review!  
**

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**Chapter Sixteen – Time to Work  
**

Tsunade summoned Neji and Michi to her office, "It's been over two months since your last mission. It's time to work that rust off. The Tsuchikage of the Earth Country has recently announced that he will step down and appoint a new successor. As you know our past relationship with the country hasn't exactly been... friendly. But we need to know who the new Tsuchikage is and what he... or she is capable of. If things should deteriorate in the future, we need to know who we are dealing with. Assemble a small team and do some recon work."

Neji bowed his head, "Hai, Hokage-sama."

"Now, this handover is scheduled to take place five days from now. They will be expecting spies from other countries during this time so be careful. Do not get caught and do not do anything that will attract too much attention," she looked at Michi, "That means don't go breaking peoples' noses."

She gaped, "That happened _once_!"  
"And once was enough. This is a sensitive matter. I need you to be discreet. Understand?"  
The two captains nodded, "Good. Dismissed."

Michi turned to her companion, "You go ahead, there's something I need to ask Tsun- erm, Hokage-sama." Neji nodded once and disappeared.

"That must have been hard; calling me 'Hokage-sama.'"  
"Yea, I had to choke it out. It's... foreign," Michi shook her thoughts, "There's something else isn't there?"

Tsunade folded her arms and gently placed them on her desk, "You know me too well," she paused for a second before continuing, "There have been some disturbing reports coming from the Hidden Village of the Sand."  
"What kind of reports?" Michi asked; all traced of mischievousness disappeared and replaced with seriousness.  
"The kind that merits the return of Ri."

Michi sighed, "Already? I just got reinstated."  
"You have been gone for _five _years. _And_ I haven't requested your services for the entire _two _months you've been home! I think that is enough rest. Don't you?" she sarcastically took a jab at Michi.

"Fine," Michi pouted but acquiesced.

Tsunade reached into the top drawer of her desk and pulled out a black folder, "Everything you need to know is in here."  
"Hey, hey, lookie here! The dossier's black now!"  
Tsuande rubbed her head sheepishly, "Shizune thought black would be less inconspicuous than the old red ones."

She wrinkled her brow, "Why would you need it to look inconspic..." she trailed off as the realization hit, "Don't tell me you've been pawning off my missions to someone else!"  
"You were gone for five years! What was I supposed to do? Wait for you to come back?!"  
Knowing she had a point, she stuttered, "Well - they better not have tarnished my reputation!"  
"They have their own aliases."

Her outrage dissipated, "G-good... the last thing I need are a bunch of newbies shitting all over my reputation."  
Tsunade rolled her eyes, "Anyway, it's for your eyes only; read it and then burn it."  
"I know the drill. I remember."  
"Just making sure; after all, you disappeared for five years," Tsunade bitterly rebuked.

"Aw, Tsunade! Are you still mad at me? Did you miss me _that_ much?" Michi leaned in toward Tsunade but she batted Michi away, "Go away! You wish I missed you! You have no idea how peaceful it has been these past five years without you!"  
Michi chuckled, "Liar. I bet you were bored out of your damn mind!"

She had a point there. Without her, things became pretty dull when she had no one who was bold enough to bicker with her. But then again, her headaches lessened when there was no one to bicker with.

But Tsunade wasn't about to let her know that. She huffed and pointed to the door, "Go! Go to the hospital and get checked out!"

Michi headed for the door and tsked, "Touchy, touchy," she sang and quickly shut the door when she saw Tsunade pick up a pen and flung it at her head.

Michi stuck her head back in, "Missed me, missed me!" she taunted and quickly shut the door again before Tsunade had another chance to chuck something at her.

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"Good afternoon, Sakura!"  
"Michi, what are you doing here?" she mumbled disinterestingly.  
"Is that any way to greet your roommate?"  
Sakura raised her eyebrow, "Ok, you got me. I need a check up. Tsunade is sending me off to a mission."  
Sakura smiled at her roommate and nodded, "Right this way."

Initially, Sakura was peeved at Michi for keeping the truth about her position as an ANBU Black Ops leader. But after a half a day of sulking, Sakura understood why; an ANBU agent's identity is its most important asset. If it were to be recklessly compromised, it could very well end in death.

She still didn't know that Michi was the infamous Ri and Michi intended to keep it that way.

She also threatened Neji with bodily harm if he ever revealed it to anyone; although keeping that fascinating tidbit from others was pretty much a given, she just had to reinforce it. She supposed it was a good thing he was a solitary creature in that respect.

"You know, this is going to suck; you being away for a mission."  
"Yea? And why's that? You gonna miss me?"  
"I'll miss you cooking for me, sure," she casually shrugged her shoulders.  
Michi gaped at her friend, "Is that why you keep me around? I cook so you don't have to?"  
"I don't keep you around for your personality, that's for sure," Sakura joked.  
Michi crossed her arms across her chest and pouted, "You're mean."

Sakura chuckled, "Now, now, if you let me examine you, I'll give you a lollipop."  
Michi glared at her, "You think you can buy me off with a piece of candy?" She paused for a moment then resumed, "Gimme two, a bottle of sake, and you got yourself a deal."

"Deal." They shook hands to solidify their agreement, "You are far too easy to please."  
Michi smirked, "That's what you think."

Michi's tone led Sakura to look at her roommate. The playful smile Michi wore on her face told Sakura everything she needed to know, "You pervert!" Sakura cried and swatted Michi's arm.

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Neji returned home and plopped down on the couch. He had just finished assembling his team for the mission. He knew that he should be packing because he couldn't very well waltz into the Earth country in his Konoha gear and expect a warm welcome.

They weren't exactly 'I wish to kill you all' (at least not yet) but they weren't exactly clamoring to have a beer with you either. One wrong move from either party, chaos could ensue. Conflict with the Earth Country was the last thing Konoha needed all things being considered. The delicate balance between the two countries could quickly shift without warning.

He instructed his team to pack regular civilian clothes. They were going to stay at the outskirts of the village but they still had to conceal themselves among the masses to collect the necessary information. He found that people tend to be a bit tight lipped when confronted with uniforms; especially uniforms of those who aren't your allies.

He forced himself off the couch and made his way to his bedroom. He opened the closet doors and stared at the clothes sitting in his closet and tried to find the most inconspicuous outfit of the bunch. He grimaced when he realized his wardrobe was lacking such an outfit.

"Why the hell do I have so many robes?! I don't wear half of this shit," he thought out loud.  
"I hope you don't plan on wearing any of those. You'll stick out like a sore thumb in those regal garbs."  
"You know, I'd appreciate it if you'd knock once in a while," he said calmly without turning around.  
"Where's the fun in that?" Michi asked laughingly.  
"What if I had been changing?" He finally turned around to look at her.  
"And there lies the fun! If only you were changing," she grinned widely.

He rubbed his eyes tiredly, "Did you need something?" She sat down on his bed and handed him a package, "I've come bearing gifts. I had a feeling your wardrobe would be lacking a bit so I took the liberty and got you some clothes."

He opened the package and found a set of clothes that were perfect for their mission, "Thanks, you saved me a trip."  
"No problem," she sauntered toward the window and threw him another package, "What's this?"  
"Wear it under those when we get there. ANBU armor would be too bulky."  
"And this is...?"  
"A lightweight armor my mother developed when she was the head of the technological development department of the ANBU forces."

He examined the package currently residing in his hands, "Don't worry too much about it. I never understood how it worked... I took after my dad in that respects."  
"If it's so great why isn't there more in circulation?"  
"Mom died before she could produce more. She didn't document how it was made and the only other person who knew how to make it is dead."  
"Sorry."

"Don't sweat it."  
"So what did you speak about with the Hokage?"  
"Who knew you could be so nosy."  
"I am not," he indignantly cried.  
"Either way, it's hardly any of your business."

She stood up tall and straight, "I'll see you in the morning," she hollered as she vanished out the window.

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Read, enjoy, and review!


	17. A Perfect Storm

**AN: I... am... currently... having a... PANIC ATTACK! **

**On the other hand, I got two of three midterms out of the way as well as a presentation... Now all I need is a trip to the art museum and an essay...Good on me.**

**Chapter 17... Enjoy... I know I can't. **

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**Chapter Seventeen – A Perfect Storm**

The team of four arrived at the village gate dressed in their standard ANBU uniforms. The two leaders chose two of the most elite agents that were needed to complete the recon mission successfully. The induction of the new Tsuchikage was in four days and they needed to get to the Earth Country as soon as possible.

They made their way through the canopy of the forest and were half way out of the Fire Country when Michi suddenly stopped and descended to the ground.

"We have to stop."  
"What? Why?"  
Michi calmly pointed to the sky and it started to rain, "That's why. It's going to start coming down really hard and we need to find shelter."

She looked at the surrounding area for any signs of shelter but when she took a step forward and felt the ground crack slightly. They were on an unstable cliff and the rain was making it worse. She looked over at Neji, the rest squad, then rolled her eyes skyward and calmly said, "Oh, crap. Gah!" as the ground crumbled beneath her feet; taking Michi with it.

"Michi!"  
"Captain Terakami!" the team shouted simultaneously.  
"Shit!" Neji cursed and looked at his team, "You look for shelter. I'll go after her. We'll meet up tomorrow morning."  
"Are you sure, captain? We can take care of it."  
"Yes! Now go!"  
"Yes, captain," they immediately obeyed and went in the opposite direction.

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The rocks were slicked by the rain; preventing her from molding her chakra and attaching herself to the rocks in order to slow her descent. She braced for impact which came quickly; tumbling and rolling twice before stopping. She rolled over to lie on her back; catching her breath.

Neji slowly made his way down the cliff; careful and weary of the slippery surface that was quickly becoming saturated by the heavy rain. When he finally made his way to her, she was lying on her back, cursing her luck.

He approached her, "You okay?"

She opened an eye, "What are you doing here? You should have stayed with the team. I could have made my way back."  
"I wasn't going to leave you lying in a ditch," he looked at their surroundings, "We have to find shelter and fast. Are you okay? Can you get up?"

She grimaced, "I think so." He pulled her up but when she put weight on her right foot, she nearly fell. He caught her in his arms, "What's wrong?"  
"Just a sprain from the fall; I'll be fine; just need to get to safety so I can heal myself." He held her up and supported her weight as she hobbled alongside him.

They walked for several minutes without incidence until she stepped on a particularly slippery rock. She slipped, nearly taking him down with her but once again was held up by Neji.

"Okay, we really need to find shelter... now."

He looked around and using his Byakugan, found a small clearing several meters away. He picked her up, "What are you doing?! Put me down!"  
"There's a clearing up ahead. Stop squirming!" he ordered.  
"I can walk just fine on my own!"  
"Yea, and look how well that turned out. I don't want you to fall on your ass and taking me down with you."  
"I didn't tell you to come get me in the first place," she grumbled.  
"We're almost there so stop complaining."  
They finally found the open clearing and a cave on the opposite side, "There! There! Go there!" she instructed. He dashed toward the cave as quickly as possible without slipping and falling. Once inside, she swatted him, "Put me down, put me down!"

He let her go and commented, "Its dark."  
She rolled her eyes, "It's a cave. What did you expect?" She illuminated the dark, dank cave with a tiny spark of lightning in the palm of her hand. They found a small pile of twigs that was most likely used by previous inhabitants of the cave. She quickly ignited the pile and a dim glow lit up the dark, dank cave.  
"I'm guessing we're not the only ones who have gotten caught in a storm."  
"Looks that way," Neji agreed, "How did you do that?" he asked regarding the fire.  
"It's called survival of the fittest," she scanned him up and down, "By the looks of things; you're not one of the fittest."

He ignored the dig and watched as she tended to her ankle and when she finished, he saw her shiver.

Thinking this was the opportune moment to get back at her for the numerous pranks she's pulled on him the past few months; he approached her and unbuckled her armored breast plate. Michi gawked at Neji, "What do you think you're doing?"  
"You need to get out of these clothes or you'll get pneumonia. You know all that medical mumbo jumbo, you know the deal. You're soaked to the bone."  
She batted his hands away, "I can... take my clothes off myself, thank you very much," she looked at him, "I'd worry about yourself if I were you. You're soaked all the way through."  
"I'll be fine. Do you need any help?" he asked slyly.  
"I'm fine," she gritted.

She walked to the other end of the cave and began to undress. He too began removing his breast plate when he heard her struggle. He looked over and saw she had difficulty in removing her shirt, "Are you sure you don't want my help?"  
"Why don't you worry about taking off your own clothes instead of mine?" she snapped irritably.

It was a pain in the ass to take off the skin tight uniform to begin with. Now with it wet, it clung to her as if it were a second skin; making it nearly impossible for her to remove. She was finally able to remove her shirt and laid it neatly in a pile on a nearby rock.

She turned her head slightly to see what her companion was up to and found that he already removed the shirt of his uniform. She watched as his rain soaked muscles glisten as the light from the fire danced across his pale skin.

She shook her head, _now is **not** the time! You have a job to do! You can ogle at your heart's content when you get home! _She returned to her task; removing her shoes and wringing out the excess water from her hair.

He was wringing out his shirt when he caught a glimpse of the underside of her swollen breasts. He stared intently as she struggled to get the sticky, skin tight garment off her body. When she was finally able to tear it off, he caught the tiniest of glimpses of her hardened, dusty, pink nipples perched proudly on her beautiful, round globes underneath the thin, pastel green lace of her bra.

She once again looked over to Neji as he was about to remove his pants. She discreetly watched as his wet pants clung onto his boxers; pulling both garments down. He fumbled quickly and reached to pull his boxers back up. She coughed at the hint of flesh he had unwittingly presented her with and dug through her bag for a towel, her cotton camisole, and shorts.

She saw him hovering over the fire in some ill-fated attempt to dry his boxers. Walking over in nothing but her bra and panties, she handed him her towel, "Take those off," referring to his boxers.  
"Excuse me?"  
"Take those off, wrap this around you, and put your boxers by the fire. It'll dry faster that way."

She returned to where her bag was and began to remove her panties while both their backs were turned. She pulled on the dried shorts (thank you, plastic baggies) and removed her bra. She quickly snatched her camisole and clutched it tightly against her breast when she felt him behind her.

"You're hurt," he quietly murmured.  
"What? Where?" He walked up behind her and gently touched the wound on the middle of her back. She bit her lip, "Shit, I can't reach to heal myself."  
"Do you have any supplies?"  
"Just basic antiseptic."  
"It'll do for now."

She handed him the antiseptic and some gauze.

He gently cleaned her wound to avoid infection and wrapped the gauze around the middle of her body.

He finished shortly afterward, "Thanks," she quietly said.  
"No problem," the air grew tense as they realized how close they were.  
She pulled out a sleeping bag from her pack and heard him curse, "I threw my bag to Daisuke. I have no sleeping bag."  
They stared at the single sleeping bag, "I can take the ground."  
She shook her head, "Don't be ridiculous. It's freezing; you'll get sick. We'll just... share. I mean after all, we're both mature, responsible adults," she paused as if contemplating, "Right?"  
"Of... of course," he hesitated.  
She crawled into the sleeping bag and when she noticed he hadn't moved, "You coming?"

He forced his legs to move, grabbed his now dried boxers, pulled them on, and slipped into the small sleeping bag next to her, "Ahem, well... good night."  
"Good night, Neji."

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They slept as far as possible from each other; making sure they didn't touch which wasn't easy considering the small sleeping bag didn't give much allowance for room. She was able to fall asleep shortly but Neji stared at the dark, black ceiling of the cave.

He was lying dangerously close to a very attractive woman who was shifting ever closer toward him. He watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest as she continued to toss and turn and mutter incoherent words. She was finally able to find a comfortable position and stopped her fidgeting.

Neji on the other hand... well, sleep didn't come so easily.

In her sleep, she had splayed her thigh across his abdomen while one of her calves found its way in between his legs. And every so often, she would rub her smooth, silky leg against his thigh. Her arm was draped across his chest while her soft breasts were pressed up against his arm. He felt her gentle breaths skim across his chest which tickled him but he didn't dare move in fears of disturbing her.

He shook his thoughts when he felt her shiver, he held her closer; keeping her warm with his body heat. He didn't deny that he was physically attracted to her; that was evidenced by his current predicament and persistent arousals whenever he was around her. He noticed that even the smallest things turned him on. It could be something as trivial as brushing a piece of lint off her shirt.

But right now, he just hoped that his current arousal that was poking at her thigh wouldn't wake her up.

He prayed that she would stay asleep because if she woke up, he wasn't sure what he'd do. He enjoyed their friendship, their banter. He would never admit it and although it gave him headaches more times than not, he enjoyed it and didn't want to ruin it.

So he desperately prayed for sleep and slowly, he drifted off to sleep but it proved to be fitful.


	18. The Earth Country

**AN: Not sure when will be the next time I'll have time to post a new one so I though since I got two chapters done, I'd post them both up.**

**It's sad that I can find time for this but not to study for my last midterm... **

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**Chapter Eighteen – The Earth Country**

She groaned at the dull aching, pain from her lower back and remembered what had happened the night earlier. She felt his breathing on the back of her neck and shifted slightly but he merely tightened his hold on her and buried his face into her hair and then murmured something she didn't understand. During the course of the night, it seems that they had become entangled within each other's limbs.

The more she tried to break away from his arms, the tighter his embrace became. After several minutes of trying to wriggle free, she was finally able to slowly pry herself out of his embrace and out of the sleeping bag.

She grabbed the towel and rummaged through her pack and pulled out a small bottle of shower gel and shampoo. She tip toed quietly out of the cave in search for water to clean herself up. After walking approximately ten minutes, she found a small spring. She removed the clothes she slept in and stepped into the warm watered lagoon. She gently and slowly washed the dirt and grime from last night's storm. After she was cleaned off, she remained in the spring relaxing and thinking about her side mission.

She had to take care and dispose of the Wind Country's traitors and she had to do it before the inauguration of the new Tsuchikage. She decided to leave for the Wind Country tonight after they arrive at the Earth Country; allowing enough time for 'Ri' to finish her mission and for her team to complete their recon mission.

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Neji stretched out his muscles and remembered last night's events. He shot up abruptly and looked around but found Michi nowhere in sight. He sighed in relief and squeezed his eyes shut; grateful that she wasn't around to see him flustered.

He heard her return shortly after, "You're awake. Good morning."  
He pinched the bridge of his nose and mumbled, "Yea, good morning," he looked up and found her brushing the dust off her clothing in nothing but a towel; that ridiculously small towel that _barely_ covered her... lower assets.

He quickly adverted his gaze but felt compelled to follow the trail of a small droplet of water that ran from her inner thigh to her dainty ankles. Tearing his eyes from her long legs, he looked up at her face but that proved to be a terrible mistake: she had washed her hair and water was dripping down her body. He took particular interest in one droplet; watching it fall from the beautiful curve of her neck to disappearing in her towel.

Realizing that she was speaking, he shook such thoughts from his mind.

"There's a small spring about ten minutes west of here. You can go clean up there."  
He got up and picked up his clothes, "Thanks," he mumbled as he fled out of the cave.

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He located the spring easily and dived in with no hesitation. He had to get away... far away from her as soon as possible. It was hard enough having to sleep in such close quarters but she was one misstep from being completely naked. He soaked in the water, trying to calm his beating heart and shake the inappropriate thoughts from his head. He wished the water was a little cooler because at the current temperature, it was doing nothing to cool his arousal.

He let out a long, shaky breath when he heard the water splash. His eyes shot open and she stood before him. Without a word, she straddled his lap and grabbed the back of his head for a fiery kiss. His own hands became entangled in her long, silky hair. She kissed the length of his collarbone and nibbled along his jaw line.

Things began to heat up when he felt her hand creep south. The oncoming pleasure ended abruptly when he began to sputter and gasp; coughing up the gallon of water he had ingested.

He furiously wiped his face and shook the water from his eyes and ears, "Please tell me that did not just happen," he muttered while shaking he water from his ears.

"What didn't just happen?"  
Startled, he spun around, "Nothing."  
"Are you okay? You've been in there for a while now."  
"I... I must have nodded off."  
"What's the matter, Sleeping Beauty? Didn't get enough sleep last night?"  
"Thanks to you," he grumbled.  
"What was that?"  
"Nothing," he cleared his throat and motioned, "Do you, uh, mind?" he asked tentatively. Immediately understanding, she turned around and waited as she heard him get out of the water.

His face grew red knowing that she almost caught him in his fantasy. But his entire body flamed up when he realized that she had given him the same towel she had been wrapped up in earlier. Neji harshly rubbed his body dry; screaming the inappropriate thoughts away. She waited several moments before turning around, "We should get back to the rest of the team."

He finished tying his forehead protector, he cleared his throat before speaking; making sure there would be no squeak-age this time, "The sooner we get there, the better." They gathered their belongings and went to look the rest of the squad.

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After finding their team, they quickly made their way through the rest of the forestry until they were a mile from the Earth Country's border.

"We'll stop here. Change into your civilian clothes." The four agents dug into their bags and quickly changed into less conspicuous attire.  
"Okay, let's get going," Neji stuffed his ANBU uniform in the small bag but Michi stopped him. She pointed to her head, "You might want to consider taking that off before going anywhere."

Neji realized he hadn't removed his forehead protector and yanked it off. After stuffing it with the rest of his belongings, they journeyed the last mile and arrived in a small village just outside of the main city.

Before entering the village, the four agents separated into groups of two. Too big of a group would be suspicious so they split up. Each pair found and checked into the same, small hotel. There was only three days left before the new Tsuchikage takes his official position and they needed to establish themselves quickly and quietly without drawing attention to themselves.

Neji and Michi decided to start gathering information at the local bar. And sake did wonders to loosen tongues and the bar was the perfect place to start finding out who the new Tsuchikage was.

And as added effort, she gritted her teeth, smiled, and selflessly sacrificed her reputation and dignity to flirt with the drunks. Neji protested... loudly at the idea but to no avail. He wanted nothing more than to slam every male patron that was giving her lecherous looks but refrained from losing his temper.

That is... until he saw a piss-assed, drunk try to make a grab for her ass while she was 'talking' to another drunk. Neji grabbed the second drunk's hand and proceeded to snap his proximal phalanx and metacarpal bones. Luckily for Neji, the drunk hadn't felt anything in his drunken stupor and no scenes were caused.

She turned to him, "Do me a favor and try not to do anything... stupid."  
"Fine, I won't stop the next guy that tries to grab your ass."  
"You forget that I can take care of myself."

As the night wore on, they found out that the next successor was relatively young; at least for Kage standards: a mere 36 year old prodigy. He was also the second son of one of the most prominent families of Iwagakure.

He had achieved some of the most elite, difficult, and forbidden techniques at a very young age and was just waiting for the appointment of Tsuchikage. The village elders and advisors had already handed him the position even before he was able to walk. They saw greatness and potential in the young boy and groomed him until he was ready.

The villagers admired him and kids looked up to him; all clamoring to be just like him: Yamada Koji. They already mounted a portrait of him on the wall of the bar: he was extremely well liked even by the outsiders of the main city.

And she had to admit... he was quite a good looking fellow.

But that was the extent of what they learned.

Since they were away from the main city and where the 'action' was, they couldn't observe Yamada Koji up close. All they knew was how brilliant and how strong and what a spectacular mind he was. There was no way these civilians would or could divulge any other information than what wasn't passed on from the main city. They weren't going to find out whether or not he was an oppressive dictator like his predecessors or a reformist.

They were all hoping for the latter.

But this complicated things: they were now going to have to make their way to the main city to collect more information and observe Yamada for themselves.

But that can only happen in the coming days. There was no way in hell that they could get into the city before the day of the induction. The village gates were to remain locked during this changeover and no one; not even the elite ANBU agents can sneak in... at least not without causing a fuss.

Which was what they had to avoid at all costs.

So staying put in the small village was their only option.

The gates will open to those residing outside of the main city when Yamada Koji is to take his role as Tsuchikage of Iwagakure.

They would just have to wait until then to sneak into the village.

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She waited until she was sure everyone was fast asleep. When she felt it was safe, Michi put on another set of clothes: a skin tight, black one piece. She pulled up her dark red plum hair and pulled out a tiger mask and placed it over her face. She strapped her blade to her back and scrunched a dark purple kimono in her back pouch.

Michi checked she had taken care of everything before summoning a kage bunshin to take her place. She quickly performed a jutsu that would allow the bunshin to keep its form for 48 hours; plenty of time to get to Suna, exterminate the conspirators, and return to Iwagakure without being noticed.

She quietly left the room through the window and made her way to complete her side mission and hoped that no one would sense anything was amiss.

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AN: proximal phalanx and metacarpal bones: your fingers


	19. The Objective

**AN: Okay, it's been a REALLY long time since I last updated and I apologize for the delays. It's been a combination of laziness and a lack of time. And seeing how the quarter is almost at an end, I'd thought I get at least one chapter in before I start gearing up to study for the dreaded finals. **

**But before we proceed, let's review shall we? Neji and Co. finally arrived at the Earth Country but due to tight security, they were unable to proceed to Iwagakure and learn more about the new would be Tsuchikage. Later that night, Michi sneaks off to Suna to complete the side mission Tsunade had assigned her.**

**And thus begins chapter 19 and as usual, read, enjoy and review!****  
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**Chapter Nineteen – The Objective**

She arrived at Suna before the sun came up. Not wanting anyone to know she was in the vicinity sooner than was necessary, she pulled off her mask, forehead protector, and put on a rather plain looking kimono.

She immediately located the building where the Feudal Lords and their assistants worked. She snuck in their offices before anyone arrived for work but found nothing in Lord Tanaka's office. She then found her way into Tanaka's aide's office. Rummaging through the documents left on the desk yielding nothing as expected; but then again, the best hiding places are sometimes in plain sight. She was about to try the file cabinet when she noticed peeling paint on the wall next to the book case.

She raised an incredulous eyebrow, _How clichéd is this?_ she asked herself. She began pulling at the books on the shelves until the bookcase finally opened revealing a safe behind it.

_Ah, it's **that** clichéd_. She successfully broke into the safe after two tries and retrieved an armful of scrolls detailing various plans and correspondence for the assassination of Lord Itou. She got everything she needed except for the where and the when.

Like everything else in her life, she was going to have to do more work.

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She waited in front of the work building until she saw a man emerge from the building to which she immediately recognized from the photos in the dossier that Tsunade had handed her.

She followed him into a small apartment building but felt that someone had been following _her_. She whipped out a kunai from her back pouch, turned the corner, and waited. Her pursuer caught up to her and she promptly pinned him to the wall; kunai pressed dangerously against his jugular.

"You shouldn't be here."  
"I know," he calmly replied.  
"Then why are you here?"  
"I heard you leave in the middle of the night. I got curious."  
"Didn't you know that curiosity killed the cat?"  
"Well, cats have nine lives," he simply retorted.  
"You're not a fucking cat!" she screamed in a heated whisper.  
He smirked, "Then how can curiosity possibly kill me?"  
She ground her teeth at his flippant remarks and hissed, "I can fucking kill you!"  
To which he calmly said, "You wouldn't be the first one to try."  
"Damn it, Neji! You weren't supposed to follow me! You left the team in a lurch! There is another mission that you need to deal with. You shouldn't be following me. I can take care of this myself!"

She was going to yell at him some more but felt two presences approaching. Reacting quickly, she shoved her weapon into Neji's pocket and pulled him toward her. She rolled them until her back was against the wall and kissed him hard and fast. She brought up one leg to wrap around his waist and continued to assault his mouth.

The two men rounded the corner having heard something but dismissed it, "It's just two kids making out. Ignore them," as they continued to talked in hushed tones but not exactly out of earshot.

Shocked at the sudden boldness of her actions, his initial reaction was to pull away. But when he heard the two men speaking in hushed tones, he realized it was merely a charade to obtain information. He pulled her closer; gripping her soft thigh and latched onto the side of her neck; allowing her to hear the conversation between the two men.

"I will be with the Lord Tanaka and Lord Itou at the festival ceremony tonight. So be ready to assassinate Itou when you have the shot. Lord Tanaka will take the rightful, one and _only_ position as feudal lord. That Itou is a fool! He doesn't understand that wars create jobs. When Tanaka takes over, everyone will be employed and no one has to worry about putting food on the table," he stared harshly at the other, "I warn you, do not miss or you will be the one on the receiving end of an arrow."  
"I understand. I assure you, I will not miss. Itou is as good as dead," the second man disappeared in a cloud of smoke, ending their conversation while the first man retreated back down the hall.

Still pinned against the wall, she felt a soft poke against her leg, "That better be a weapon."  
He chuckled in amusement and reached into his pocket and produced the weapon she had threatened him with earlier, "You want to tell me what's going on?"  
She snatched the kunai from him, "No, not particularly."  
"Tell me what's going on, Michi."  
"Don't use my real name while I'm on a mission!"  
"What am I supposed to call you? I can't very well call you by your _other_ name, now can I?"  
"You can call me 'Masterful One.'"  
He scoffed, "Yeah, right."  
At his questioning eyes, she rolled her eyes, "A conspiracy, all right? Bloody wonderful isn't it?"

She walked past him and out of the building, "Where are you going?"  
"I need to prepare. And you! You need to leave. I can't do my job with you here."  
"I can take care of myself."  
"I don't care two shits if you can take care of yourself or not. That is _not _the point. _You _were assigned a job. _You_ need to get back to the squad and finish that recon mission. This mission is meant for me. Not you! Now go."  
"I can't leave now. Not when I know what you're up to. And you can forget about trying to make me leave. I'm staying whether you like it or not."

She growled at him but knew there was nothing she could say or do to change his mind, "Fine," she gritted, "Stay out of my way."  
"Tell me what those two were planning."  
She growled at his questions, "Feudal lord Tanaka and his assistant hired that man to kill to Lord Itou. I was sent to stop them and assassinate Tanaka for his attempt at a coup d'état. Tanaka is a big advocator of war. Tsun- ugh, Hokage-sama asked me to collect evidence against him and then eliminate them."  
"And have you gotten evidence?"  
She gawked at him disbelievingly, "I'm not stupid! I've been doing this a helluva lot longer than you have! I know what I'm doing! All you have to know is that after tonight, the Tanaka threat will be eradicated and peace will reign until the next asshole decides that he knows how to run the country."

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It was getting late and they found a secluded area where she removed her kimono and let down her long, flowing hair.

Neji at once, was captivated. She was beautiful. With the most luscious curves he'd ever seen. And ridiculously long legs. He wasn't going to deny her attractiveness; Neji had always found her beautiful; from the first moment he saw her. And that particular fact never escaped him which annoyed the fuck out of him because he chose the life of a ninja and that meant ignoring all distractions.

But Michi was one distraction too great to ignore. Here she was, clad in a black, skin tight outfit that accented both her long, shapely, legs and ample chest.

Pretty hard to ignore; even for those who has ice water coursing through their veins.

She shoved her discarded kimono toward Neji and pulled down her mask, "Hold these. Stay here and I'll come find you when I'm done."

And whirl of wind and jasmine petals, she disappeared.

He shoved her kimono in the small pouch strapped to his leg and pursued her, "Yea, right, you didn't really think I was going to stay behind, did you?" he said aloud to no one in particular, "I'm not about to let you have all the fun."


	20. Mission Complete

**AN: Okay, finals start tomorrow... must study, study, study but first, here's Chapter 20! Sorry it's kind of short... shorter than my previous chapters but what can you do? **

**I'm in a good mood today! Let's hope that lasts.****  
**

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**Chapter Twenty – ****Mission**** Complete**

She swiftly cut through the village until she got to the heart of Suna where a local festival was slated to take place. She counted four possible vantage points that an assassin could carry out his task from. She studied the dossier Tsunade gave her cover to cover and knew that this particular assassin preferred rooftops over window, eliminating two of the possibilities. Next, she remembered that he favored his right side over his left due his left handedness.

That left only one possibility.

She made it up to the right rooftop and found the would-be assassin waiting to take aim of his bow at the feudal Lord Itou.

Waiting impatiently for the old, foolish lord to arrive, the assassin suddenly felt an oppressing, unfamiliar presence. Sniffing the air, he smelled a familiar scent but was unable to place it immediately. He knew he had smelled it before and it was right on the tip of his tongue but the name still escaped him.

After several tense moments, he finally remembered where he smelt the scent: when he was walking past the community garden earlier.

And it was jasmine.

Swiftly turning around, he saw her standing tall and almost regal with her sword drawn, "It's you!"  
"I'm flattered that you know who I am. That means you know what'll happen and I don't have to waste my time explaining," she calmly informed the shocked man.  
"Ri," he growled and stood up to his full height.

He refused to back down from this kunoichi no matter how terrifying the stories were about her. Like most, he dismissed her as a myth, a legend whose stories were greatly exaggerated and didn't believe such a person existed.

He threw his bow to the ground and drew his sword, believing that he would actually be a match for her.

"Ri," she confirmed, "Too bad you won't be able to inform your buddies down there," she slashed her sword twice in a crossing motion.

She disappeared from the scene even before her first target dropped to the ground.

Ri dashed through amongst the masses who were waiting for the announcement of the official start of the festival. It didn't take long before Ri saw the two feudal lords along with their right hand man emerge.

She reached into her back pocket and pulled out several scrolls and with the other, she drew her sword and launched herself at the two remaining conspirators and ran her sword through them in a quick zigzag motion.

Before anyone was able to comprehend what was happening, she had already disappeared. The masses saw the two bloody bodies drop to the ground and chaos ensued. People screamed and scattered in various directions while Lord Itou saw a pile of scrolls addressed to him.

He smelled the faint but undeniable scent of jasmine in the area and knew immediately what had happened. He tore open the scroll and his suspicions were confirmed: he was betrayed and was the target of an assassination attempt by his fellow feudal lord.

He pocketed the rest of the scrolls; opting to go through them in the privacy of his own office and proceeded in trying to calm down the hysteria of the public as he ordered the dead bodies to be taken away.

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She found him at the border and pulled off her mask, "I thought I told you to stay away."

"What can I say? I had other plans," he shrugged his shoulders to which peeved her off more.  
She pulled off the hair tie and furiously shook her hair loose, "No one has ever seen Ri kill and lived to tell about it."  
"Believe me, if I didn't have my Byakugan, I would have missed the whole thing. You're fast. Your speed almost outmatches Gai and Lee's."  
"It's kind of a prerequisite for this line of work. You can't be seen, can't be heard. You get your kill and get out immediately. There's no time to dawdle."

She pulled up her hair back up and began to lecture, "Now we have to get back quickly. There's only one day until the gates to Iwagakure open for the inauguration of the Tsuchikage. See, this is why you were supposed to remain with the team!" she cried exasperatedly.

"We'll get back in time if we leave now. Our bunshins will be able to take care of themselves as well as the team for a couple more hours. Do you have everything?"  
She rolled her eyes and nodded, "Good, then let's get going."  
"Yes, **_mother_**," Michi snapped sarcastically.

She stalked off toward the Earth country leaving a confused Neji behind.

Neji and Michi began to make their way back to the hotel they had been staying at in the Earth Country.

She ignored him for most of the trip; still irritated that he had followed her.

As if she didn't know how to take care of herself.  
As if she wasn't competent and capable enough to complete the mission by herself.

Not being able to withstand her frosty demeanor any longer, he broke the silence, "You can't possibly still be upset with me!'  
"Of course I am!"  
"Why?!"  
She stopped abruptly to face him, "Why? Why?!" she screamed incredulously, "Why wouldn't I be?! This was my assignment, not yours!"  
"I told you, I was just curious to where and what you were planning to do."  
"You know who I am, Neji! You know what I do! You're a fucking genius! You can put two and two together! Why else would I be sneaking out in the middle of the night? You should know better!"  
"I did know better," he quietly mumbled.

He let out a heavy breath, "Okay, the truth is... I knew you were assigned a side mission. When Tsunade kept you in her office after our meeting, I figured it out. But I really was curious to know what it was. I apologize for interfering but in all fairness, I wasn't planning on getting caught."

"Then you shouldn't have let chakra flare up," she continued to lecture.  
"Are you still mad at me?"  
"I don't appreciate you following me the way you did. I mean, how would **_you_** feel if **_I_** followed you on a secret mission? How would you like it if I didn't think you were competent enough to finish a mission on your own? How would you feel – ?"

He held his hands up in surrender, "I get it. I get it. Really, I do. I'm sorry," he reached into his back pouch and retrieved a small package out of his pocket.

It was Onigiri.

He handed her the triangular snack, "Truce?"

She swiped the Onigiri out of his hands, "If you think you can make it up to me with food... you would be correct. **_However_**, if you think this small package of rice will do the trick, you are sorely mistaken. I expect a feast when we return to Konoha."

"Hell, I'll even cook for you," to which she smiled brightly, "So? Truce?"  
"Yea, yea, yea, you got yourself a truce."

They shook hands to seal the truce and continued their way back.


	21. Along Came a Little Bird

**AN: Finals all done!!! Here is Chapter 21. Enjoy! **

**And the good mood continues!!! That's Amare!!****  
**

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**Chapter Twenty One – ****Along Came a Little Bird**

The day of the coronation arrived and the gates of Iwagakure opened as outsiders from all the surrounding towns clamored to witness the historic event.

A giant wave of people pushed and shoved until they littered the small town square as they all gathered impatiently; waiting for the appearance of the newly appointed Tsuchikage. The four Konoha ninjas spread out in various directions to avoid detection and tried to look as interested and as excited as those around them.

While waiting for the pomp and circumstance to begin, a small, blue bird perched itself on Michi's left shoulder. She brushed the bird off and groaned as her head dropped down to her chest, "Shit, again?" she muttered quietly to herself. She expelled a lungful of air out and dropped her arms to her side. With a simple substitution jutsu, she was able to slip away from the ceremony unnoticed.

Save for one pair of eyes.

"Remind me to get you a set of normal people eyes when we get back!" she harshly whispered.  
"I have to admit, you are very good. But I'm not too shabby myself."  
"I mean you'd think with eyes that look like that, you would be blind! But noooo! You'd just _have_ to see everything!Because god forbid you'd miss something from time to time," she continued ranting; ignoring his previous comment.  
"So what are you up to this time?"  
"Didn't we just have an argument about you following me? You don't do a very good job at listening do you? Is it in one ear and out the other? Because if it is, please tell me now so I don't even have to bother with you in the future!"  
"Are you done ranting? You're beginning to turn into an interesting shade of blue."  
"No, I'm not done.And you should go back to with the rest of the team and finish your mission."  
"Seriously, try to take a couple of breaths. I'd hate for you to pass out from a lack of air and then not be able to complete your side mission."

Annoyed by his calm, laid back, flippant demeanor, she growled, "Did you take some pills this morning?"  
"Not that I know of. Now, tell me what you're doing."  
"No I will not!You have a mission! Imagine how furious Tsunade would be if you failed.Just go back and–" She paused and rethought it, "Actually no, you can come with me. You may come in handy this time around."  
"Oh, I see, I'm like a dog. When I'm in the way, you kick me to the curb but when you need me, suddenly I'm your best friend."  
"Seriously, did someone slip you some pills this morning? You're a bigger dick than usual."  
"I can say the same about you," he snipped.  
After taking a short trip, they landed softy and gently on the roof of a giant building.

"Where are we?"  
"The Tsuchikage's quarters."  
"And why are we at the Tsuchikage's quarters?"  
"You can't tell me that you're not interested in the delicious scandals this guy has."  
"I'm not particularly interested, no."  
"Just tell me what you see," she demanded while pointing down.  
"I see... red roof shingles. And it's of a very high quality too."  
"What ever pills you have been taking, I am cutting you off! Tell me what you see!"

He sighed and grumbled, "What am I looking for?"  
"You'll know it when you see it," she shot back.

He scanned the contents of the big room and paid attention to anything out of place, "There.There's a large amount of compressed chakra in a small wooden box about this big," he demonstrated with his hands.

"Son of a bitch.So it was here all along. Any guards?"  
"One. Posted outside the door. And there are traps."  
"Traps are easy; traps I can handle. Okay, you need to go."  
"Wait, what?"  
"Neji, you need to leave."  
"Are you crazy? You're breaking into the Tsuchikage's office! The most important guy in the country! The guy is worshipped like a god! You can't possibly do this alone!"  
"I can and I will.This isn't the first time I've had to do something like this and it won't be the last. Now go."  
"But–"  
"Damn it, Neji!I don't have time to get into a screaming match with you. This is not a request! Nor is this up for negotiation! It is an order."

Realizing how harsh it came out, she amended, "Please, Neji. You cannot be here for this. Things may get hairy and the team needs a leader to look up to. This is a time sensitive matter. I need to finish this before the ceremony is over."  
"I don't want something to happen to you," recognizing how intimate that came out, he double backed, "I mean if anything happened, Hokage-sama would have my head and I like my head attached to my body."  
"Nothing is going to happen to me. Please, Neji," she quietly pleaded with him.  
He finally relented, "You'll tell me what's going on later?" She nodded.  
His eyes softened, "Be careful."  
"I promise," she whispered into the wind as Neji made his departure.

Remembering her mission, she transformed her appearance: her hair turned into a snowy white color and her eyes into a pale grey. This particular mission didn't require the appearance of Ri so she opted for something a little different.

She performed several hand seals, placed her palms flat on the roof, and mumbled a short incantation. She saw that the window was triggered to go off once it was opened; trapping the trespasser in a genjutsu. The trap was easy for her to deactivate but instead chose to phase in through the roof instead.

She then phased through the door. With a curved blade given to her by her father in one hand, she quietly approached the oblivious guard. She only planned on knocking him unconscious but when he turned around and saw her, she quickly slit his throat, "I'm sorry. But I can't have you alerting your friends or walking in on me just yet." She dragged the dead guard and shoved him in the janitor closet and phased back into the Tsuchikage's room.

She located the wooden box that Neji described easily and found that a barrier was surrounding the box. With three quick hand seals, she was able to slide her dainty hand in the barrier. She smirked at the ease of the traps, "Amateurs," she lifted the lid of the wooden box and extracted the blue, glowing orb that was the size of a marble. In its place, Michi swapped it with a similar looking but actual marble in the box.

"Keep this safe.I expect it back when I ask for it later," she instructed the large toad after summoning it. The toad nodded and vanished in a cloud of smoke.

She dusted off the invisible debris off her uniform, "Time to get caught," she saw that the door was also rigged that when it was opened, a silent alarm would be triggered and guards will show up.

She opened the door and was quickly surrounded by giant, burly guards. They charged at her with swords drawn but she nimbly flipped backward into the air. When the guards picked themselves off the ground after colliding with each other, they looked at each other confused and disoriented.

Michi's genjutsu was taking affect and the men forgot why they were there and that they had seen her. One guard, presumably the leader, yelled at the rest to return to their posts after seeing a small white cat, "It was only a fucking cat that tripped the alarm!"

The men stumbled out of the small cramped hallway and back to their positions. Michi plucked the small kitten from the floor and carried her out of the building, "They were definitely not ninjas were they?Just a bunch of brutes. Isn't that right, Kali?" she conferred with the kitten.

She returned to the ceremonial grounds just in time to hear the new Tsuchikage berate any enemies that dare stand in the way of the rising power of the Iwagakure. He gave warning to the surrounding countries that they will be a force to be reckoned with and anyone that goes against them will have to worry about complete annihilation.If forced, the Tsuchikage had told the public that they will unleash their most deadliest weapon on their enemies.

The four Konoha ninjas tried to hide their cringes as they heard the masses scream and cheer for the destruction of presumably Konoha and their allies.

After the ceremony, the villagers returned to their respective villages while the four ninjas checked and paid for their stay at the hotel.

They planned a quick getaway before giving anyone a chance to realize their disappearance.


	22. Revelations

**AN: Man, finals are done and I had planned on updating everyday but that hasn't worked out too well. Hopefully, I'll be able to post up another chapter by the end of the week before my final quarter (yes, that's right, my FINAL quarter) begins. **

**I can't wait until I graduate but I must say, I'm not exactly looking forward to this last quarter. /**

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**Chapter Twenty Two – Revelations**

They spent the rest of the day fleeing the small remote town until they reached the border of the Fire Country. Three miles into the border, they found and stopped at a small inn for food and shelter.With their stomachs sated and fatigue setting in, the four retreated to their respective rooms. 

As Michi was shutting her door, Neji stuck his foot in to stop it from closing, "You owe me an explanation, remember?"  
"Oh, come on Neji!It's late and I've had a really, really tiring day. I had to steal, perform a bunch of ninjutsu and genjutsu, had a run in with a handful of guards, listen to that new Tsuchikage make threats, and flee all the way from the Earth Country. I am so, so very tired. What would happen if I don't get my beauty sleep?"  
He was unmoved by her sob story, "Nice try. What's going on?"

She scowled at his perceived insensitivity, "Fine. Tsunade sent a messenger instructing me to retrieve something that _was_ in the Tsuchikage's custody. Something that has been in his custody for the past 20 some years. Something that wasn't supposed to be in his possession in the first place." She summoned the toad from earlier, "Spit it out," the toad uncurled his giant tongue and placed it in her palm.

"This pretty little thing." She handed the delicate orb to Neji as he stared in amazement. "What... is this?"

"This... is Life Orb. It absorbs life energies, like chakra, from all living things; plants, animals, humans – take your pick. Anyway, it originates from the Water Country from... about oh, four centuries ago. And its original purpose was to bring prosperity during times of hardship. You see, the orb was developed to absorb life energies so that if there were to ever have say, a famine or something of that nature, they could release those energies back into the earth to promote life and growth."

She took a breath, allowing him to process the information before starting again, "They meant for the orb to store about two years worth of energies before releasing it.But after a while, they forgot all about it; they didn't have a need for it. They were prospering and the energies weren't necessary to stimulate life.But during wars, in what was a complete accident, several of the Life Orbs exploded and as it turned out, it was worse than a C4 bomb. And then during the Great Ninja Wars, some spies from the Earth Country were able to get their hands on the final Life Orb. And apparently they've been keeping in a nice little box for years... Rather stupid hiding place. I don't know what is up with these silly, easy to find, easy to infiltrate hiding spots. It's not even very well hidden! Sometimes, they're not even hidden! Really people! You'd think with something as important as that they'd keep in a safer place... but that never seems to be the case and I just don't understand it. I mean same thing with Tanaka's assistant... hiding documents behind a wall? How clichéd is _that_?" 

She rambled off tangent and almost incoherently until Neji held his hands up to stop her babbling.  
"Bad hiding places: I get it. Can we get back to the issue at hand?"  
"Again... what pills?"  
He ignored her comment, "No one knew about this?"

"We've had our suspicions but without proof, it's not like we could storm in and demand them to hand it over. It's a delicate situation. Even now, with proof, there's no way we can march in and ask them for it."  
"What proof?"  
"Tsunade and co. was able to decipher the scroll you obtained. It outlines plans and possible uses for the orb. And let me tell you, it wasn't pretty. So they instructed me to take it back so they won't be able to employ it in any way what so ever. But now that it's in our hands, it'll be safe."  
"What happens to the orb now?"

"It needs to be guarded and placed somewhere safe. It can't be kept in Konoha; it'll be the first place they'd look and the Water Country can't take it back because it'll look odd for it to return after it's been missing for so many years. Only Tsunade and the Mizukage will know the exact location. It will have three guardians to look after it: my little friend in the corner," she jerked her thumb toward the toad, "Kakashi is giving up one of his dogs, and I have a trained tiger lying in wait."  
"You train tigers?"  
She shrugged indifferently, "More like felines. And it is not as easy as one would think."

She plucked the orb from his hands and handed it back to the toad, "Give it to Tsunade when she asks for it," he toad nodded once more and silently disappeared. 

She walked toward the window and he saw her shirt stained with blood, "Shit, you're bleeding," he rushed over to her side.  
She winced, "My wound must have reopened."  
"Let me take a look at it." She began to pull off her shirt when he stopped her, "W-what are you doing?"  
"How do you expect to look at my wound if I don't take off my shirt?"  
"I'll uh, turn around."

They had been so busy focusing on their missions, running around nonstop that they had forgotten about her wound. Now, he was worrying that the wound may become infected.

She sat down on the edge of bed, "You can turn around now."  
He saw that the wound had indeed reopened, "This isn't good. Lie down, I'm going to get a first aid kit," she nodded and he took off to the bathroom.

She made herself comfortable on the bed and waited for him. He came back with an armful of medical supplies, "Okay, this is going to sting a little so just bear with me," she nodded again but gasped in pain at the contact with the antiseptic.

"Sorry," he apologized but she shook her head to indicate that she was fine. He continued to gently clean her wound and when he finished, he discarded the bloodied gauze, "You're going to need stitches.Now, I'm no medic but I've stitched myself up a couple of times. When we get back to Konoha, get Sakura to take a look and heal it."

She nodded in agreement, "Okay, here I go," she readied herself for him to start. He made the first stitch and she jumped at the piercing needle, "Sorry, are you okay?"

She sucked in her breath, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just... not used to it. Kind of silly isn't it? I know all this medical stuff and I do this kind of thing for a living and I get queasy over a little needle. The irony doesn't escape me," she chuckled wryly.  
He smiled, "It doesn't escape me either."  
She scowled and stuck her tongue out at him, "Tell me when you're done."

He continued to carefully and gently stitch the rest of her wound; taking extra care that he wasn't hurting her or making her uncomfortable. His fingers would gently brush up against her soft, smooth skin as he stitched the length of the wound. 

He wondered why he was so concerned about her comfort. The other times he needed to stitch himself or one of his subordinates, he'd quickly stitch them up and call it a day. He forced his mind back to the task at hand deciding to think about it later. He finally finished after fifteen minutes, "Finished," he told her. 

When he leaned over, he discovered that she had fallen fast asleep.  
He grabbed the comforter and covered her half exposed body in order to shield her from the cold.

He sighed and plopped down onto a nearby chair. He pinched the bridge of his nose; tired from the day's events. He stared at Michi's sleeping form; she turned to sleep on her side and clutched the blanket closer to her body. Like the last time they shared sleeping quarters, he heard her mumble something incomprehensible. He chuckled lowly; finding her mumbling endearing and wondered what she was dreaming about. 

He was trying to figure out why he was so concerned with her well being. After all, she was the infamous Ri; if anyone was capable of taking care of themselves, it would be her. And his concern for her goes beyond that of a simple friendship.

He cared deeply for Tenten but he highly doubted he'd have this much inner turmoil. And he doubted that he would butt into half of the things she did... mostly from the lack of interest.

But there was something that drew him to Michi. Something that was powerful enough to break through the wall of solitude that he had carefully built up over the years. He examined his thoughts and feelings but still came up with an empty explanation for his attraction to her.

He continued staring at Michi's still form; observing the gentle glow from the moon envelop her.

_It means that you like her, _a small voice answered, _it means you like her! Are you really **that **dense? You call yourself a genius?_

He sat in his seat silently for several moments that felt like an eternity before he came to a mind boggling revelation: he liked her. As in he cared for her... as in had feelings for her. He shot up from the chair: wide eyed and stared at Michi's tranquil form in disbelief. 

He thought back to all the time they spent together. The time they spent at her cottage, the time spent talking about the pain of losing their fathers, all the times she said something or did something to embarrass him, all the times she'd make him feel like an idiot, all the times she'd tease him, all the times she'd do something so show him up.

"Holy... shit.I like her," he mumbled to himself as he slumped back into his seat.

And that was when he knew the world had stopped rotating.

That hell had frozen over.

The icy and frigid cold hearted bastard, Hyuga Neji had taken an interest in a woman.

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AN: Ack, not my best chapter thus far but I proofread it about a bajillion times and I just can't seem to improve on it and it may be because I'm sick with worry with the health of my Suns.


	23. Infatuation? I Think Not

**AN: I wanted to post this up on Friday but alas, no such luck so here it is today instead. And tomorrow is the start of a new school session (my final one! YIPEE!) so I wanted to get this up before I become bombarded with reports and projects and group work.  
**

**It feels a little short but it ended on a good cliffhanger-ish dilemma (I think). **

**On another note, it's one of _those _chapters so if you're not 18 or even if you are but are offended with adult situations, please click on the little X button that is located on the top right hand corner of the window.**

**As usual, enjoy and review!**

**Chapter Twenty Three – Infatuation? I Think Not**

He woke up woozily in his bed. He looked around and wondered when during the course of the night did he find his way back to his room. In all fairness, he wasn't surprised; last night's revelation took a lot out of him. He spent the majority of the night convincing himself that whatever he _thought_ he felt for Michi was merely an infatuation; that she is a highly attractive woman and he would have to be dumb, deaf, and blind not to find her attractive as a member of the opposite sex.

When that didn't work, he began listing all her flaws: she was a drinker, she was foul mouthed, she was mean, she was rude, extremely blunt, and had a wicked sense of humor. But the more he focused on her flaws, the more he realized that that was what was so endearing about her in the first place.

Shaking the thoughts that were plaguing his throbbing head, he pushed himself off the bed and headed to the bathroom. He rubbed his eyes while turning the knob and was greeted with a short, shrill shriek.

He had walked in on Michi... naked.

Realizing that he was still staring complete with his jaw agape, he quickly averted his eyes and apologized profusely, "I'm so sorry. I am so, so sorry."

Michi wrapped herself in a giant towel, "It... it's okay, Neji, really. You just startled me."

"I thought I was in my room."

"You fell asleep on the chair."

"How did I end up in your bed- on your bed- I mean, on the bed?"

"When I woke up, I dragged you."

"Oh, uh, thank you."

"You're welcome. I, uh, was just washing up. Well, washing up as best as I can with the stitches on my back."

"Oh, uh, do you um, need any help?"

"Could you really? You don't mind?"

"Uh, no. Take a seat," he took a small hand towel near the sink and soaked it in water. He wrung out the excess liquid and diligently cleaned around her wound; careful to not wet her stitches.

He was half way finished cleaning around her wound when her lush, soft, naked body crawled into his lap. Her lips pressed upon his with crushing force. His hands instinctively went to her hips; groping at the tender skin there. She tugged at his long, silky hair and he groaned in her hot, moist mouth. His hands moved to caress her soft buttocks.

"Neji," he heard her cry, "Neji."

"Yoo-hoo, Neji, are you okay?"

He snapped out of his trance and realized it was just his mind playing games with him, "I-I'm fine. I think it was the lack of sleep," during his little fantasy, she had gotten dressed and was currently pulling her hair up, "I asked if you were going to take a shower."

"Oh, I-I-I think I'll do that in my o-own room."  
"Okay, suit yourself," she walked out of the bathroom and he slowly followed her out.

"How am I... going to get out of here?"

"You can use the door... like a normal person," she said as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.

"Are you insane? I can't be seen leaving a room that is occupied by a woman! What if Daisuke or Kasumi saw me and got the wrong idea? I have a reputation to uphold!"  
"Ah yes, the Hyuga propriety. How could I ever forget about that?"

She walked over to the door and peered into the hallway, "The coast is clear, Captain Hyuga."

He huffed at her mockery, "I love that you take such pleasure in this."

"You have no idea." The two of them walked out of the room and closed the door when the two of them were interrupted by Daisuke, "Good morning Captain Terakami, Captain Hyuga."  
"Ah, good morning, Daisuke," they greeted simultaneously.

"Did you just wake up?"

Seeing that Neji was on the verge of panicking, Michi interjected, "As a matter of fact, yes. Captain Hyuga came to wake me up. I guess I had some trouble getting out of bed this morning... back problems."

Daisuke nodded his head and didn't question her explanation, "Kasumi and I were just about to grab some breakfast. Will you be joining us?"  
Michi smiled widely at the mention of food, "Absolutely!"

Neji, however, needed some time alone from Michi to calm his raging hormones, "You guys go ahead. I didn't get a chance to shower before waking Captain Terakami up."

The two nodded and left the lone ANBU captain as he retreated to his room.

Once in the sanctuary of his room, he let out a sigh of relief. He locked himself in the bathroom and immediately turned on the shower. He hastily removed his clothes and stepped in beneath the running water. He squeezed his eyes shut but every time he did so, images of the two of them flashed; their limbs becoming entangled in a mass of sweaty flesh.

He groaned irritably. He couldn't fully wrap his head around his feelings for Michi. Yes, last night he had that earth shattering revelation that he had these... _feelings_ for her but he couldn't figure out why he stuttered like a fool around her; why he suddenly couldn't act like a _normal_ human being around her.

It's not like he doesn't have any experience in this area. He's had plenty of women throw themselves at him on various occasions. And it's not like he's never seen a naked woman before. He once came home from a mission and found a very attractive woman (by any normal man's standards) sprawled across his bed stark naked wearing only a seductive, come hither look. He, of course, threw her out of the apartment without a second glance and promptly burned the sheets. He made sure he locked all the doors and windows every time he left the house after that.

But after the countless near misses of catching Michi nude and then with this morning's run-in, his libido went into overdrive. This was completely new and foreign territory for him.

He's been with other women but he never felt anything for any of the brainless, twittering women he's been with in the past. But for some unimaginable, inconceivable reason, he, one: couldn't get her out of his head, and two: felt like jumping her at every chance he got.

He turned the water down; making it unbelievingly, teeth chattering cold; the temperature dropping to near freezing levels. But it was becoming increasingly hard to ignore the urges of his lower regions but he refused to give in. He knew he wouldn't be able to satisfy himself by his own hands anyway; only her body entwined with his would be able to sate his sinfully, delicious, lusty desires.

He looked down at his throbbing organ and began to yell, "What makes her so different? Why must you always behave this way whenever she's around? You're never like this with anyone else so what makes her so special? Stupid!" he continued berating his still hard member, "If you don't stop right this instant, so help me god..." he was unable to finish his threat to the offending appendage.

The freezing cold water was finally taking effect as he felt his arousal begin to wane. He stepped out of the shower and quickly dried off.

As he looked at himself in the mirror, he realized that the more he dug and the more he analyzed his feelings, the more he realized that whatever he was feeling for Michi was **_not_** a simple infatuation.

Now, he had to figure out what he was going to do about it.


	24. Dilemma, Dilemma

**AN: First two days of classes and my nightmare has been realized... lots and lots of projects and reports and reading and expensive as hell! **

**(me hyperventilating) must... get... my... work... done... as... soon... as... possible... no... more... procrastinating... procrastinating... very, very bad... bad, bad, bad (and... scene!)  
**

**So before I start tearing my hair out with all this work, here's chapter 24 and hopefully, I can get chapter 25 within the coming days.**

**As usual, enjoy and review!**

**Chapter Twenty Four – Dilemma, Dilemma**

They arrived back in Konoha in the dead of the night. The two captains ordered Daisuke and Kasumi home while they dragged their tired bodies to report to the Hokage.

Tsunade slammed her fist on the desk, "So we're no better off with the new Tsuchikage." Tsunade clenched and unclenched her fists repeatedly after hearing that the new Tsuchikage was as big a menace as his previous predecessors. The threat of war was becoming increasingly apparent and becoming harder to avoid.

She looked at the two elite ninjas that stood before her and knew that if the time comes, she would have to send both of them into battle.

And she dreaded the thought.

Yes, they were trained for this; trained their entire life for combat. They were extremely skilled and brilliant. But they haven't lived through times of war.

A war is nothing like the missions or matches they've encountered.

They don't know the horrors and terrors that accompanied it; the pain and suffering and loss that came hand in hand with war and destruction.

She lived and fought during times of war.

She experienced all the horrible and terrifying things that one sees during war and she wouldn't wish that kind of life on even her worse enemies.

And she knew.

She knew that if she sent her ninjas into war, they would be more than happy to fight for and die for her and the village. She had done it. She had seen her friends do it. She had seen her loved ones do it and she knew that they were no different.

And that was the scariest notion of all; they were all willing to die for a cause without knowing what was in store for them. She didn't want this. And she didn't understand how the relationship between the two countries had come to this; this eternal hatred and endless fighting and bickering.

She once again looked at the two ANBU captains and promptly dismissed them, "Michi, I need a word with you."

Neji nodded and left Michi in the office with Tsunade, "Are you all right?" Michi concernedly asked Tsunade.

"I may have to send half of the villagers to their death. I don't think I'm all right."

"Tsunade, what ever happens, you know that we'll stand by you."

"That's what I'm afraid of."  
"No one wants a war. No one wants to die. But we will do what ever it takes to protect you, this village, our culture, and our way of life."

Tsunade was still looking miserable, "Look, we all have faith in you. Not because you're the Hokage but because you are who you are. You are the granddaughter of the Shodai, grandniece of the Nidaime, apprentice of the Sandaime, and one of the legendary Sannin. You come from a long linage of Hokages but that doesn't make you who you are. It certainly helped shape you. But the reason we follow you; the reason we are willing to die to protect you and how we live, we do it because you are Tsunade; the person. Now would you stop looking so... pitiful? It's becoming rather pathetic."

She scowled at the insult but felt better. She knew that she would have to start consulting the village elders and her advisors and decided to do it tomorrow.

"I'm assuming you want to know what happened on my other missions. That's why you kept me back right?"  
"Oh, right. Let's start with the Suna mission."  
"Well, I'm sure you've heard by now that Tanaka and his associates are dead. I've collected all the documents and correspondence between the three and handed them over to Itou. I don't understand why they didn't burn it like a sane person would. I thought it was going to be harder to find something incriminating on them."

"And how did it go with the orb?"

"The Life Orb has been obtained and secured. Whenever you're ready for it, you know the summoning spell."  
"Did you run into any trouble?"  
"Nothing I couldn't get out of. Again, pure arrogance; didn't take too much care in hiding it. It was in a wooden box on the table for fuck's sake. You'd think they pull that shit out for show and tell or something. They'll notice it's missing in about a week, maybe less. They'll come poking around and when they don't find anything, they run back to Iwagakure with their tails between their legs. We'll be out of suspicion... for a while at least. They'll check out the other possibilities and then it'll end with them suspecting us again."

"That sounds about right."

"Anyway, once they figure out to... un-brainwash the guards, they'll be looking for a white haired, grey eyed woman."

"You sneak."

"What else is new?"

Michi yawned, "Well then I'm going home. I've been running around all day and I am tired. I just want to crawl into my nice, comfortable, soft, warm bed and sleep through tomorrow."

"Go, go, get out of here."  
"Good night, Tsunade. And don't think too much about this whole thing with the Tsuchikage. Whatever you decide, it'll be the right one."

Tsunade smiled, "Thank you. And good night."

Michi exited Tsunade's office and found Neji leaning on the wall adjacent to the door.

"I hope you haven't been eavesdropping."  
He feigned outrage even though he really didn't hear anything, the mere accusation afforded him that kind of reaction, "I am insulted that you would even suggest such a thing!"

"Yea, yea, yea. What are you still doing here?"

"I thought I'd walk you home."  
"You do know that I'm capable of walking myself right?"

"I know..."  
"Oh, I get it. You're the one that needs protection right? Scare of the big bad wolves lurking out there?"

"What can I say? You've figured it out. I was hoping that you'd protect me."  
"All you had to do was ask."

They started walking toward her apartment, "Anyway, when are you cooking my dinner?"

"Dinner?"

"Don't you dare pretend you don't remember! You promised to cook me dinner as a way to beg for my forgiveness after following me to Suna."

"Oh, right, that dinner."

"Yea, that dinner. The dinner where you grovel and kiss my feet."

He rubbed the back of his head, "How about tomorrow night?"

"Tomorrow night? Really?"

"Sure. The sooner I get this over with, the sooner you'll stop blackmailing me."

"First of all, I am not blackmailing you. You volunteered! And secondly, are you sure?"

He let out a shaky breath, "Absolutely not. I'm not entirely sure how to cook but I'd like to get it out of the way."  
"You don't have to make it sound so horrible. It's not like getting your teeth pulled."  
"I don't spend a lot of time in the kitchen."  
"I'll be sure to keep the fire extinguisher handy."  
"That's hardly funny."

She laughed anyway, ignoring his glare.

They reached the apartment Michi shared with Sakura, "Remember to let Sakura take a look at that wound."

"Don't worry, I will. Good night, Neji."

Suddenly that stifling, uncomfortable feeling crept over him.

The banter between them was still there, but now what is he supposed to do? "Good night... buddy," he lightly punched her on the arm as her body swayed from his punch.

She cleared her throat and returned the favor, punching him twice as hard as she gritted, "Yea, right back at-cha, _buddy_."

She entered the apartment, slammed the door on his face, and left him stupefied. He didn't know it was possible but at that very moment, he felt like the biggest idiot in the world. He's had plenty of experience with women before but he didn't know how to act when he was around this particular one.

"Buddy? Buddy? You fucking idiot!" He screamed at himself.

Thankfully it was late and no one was around. Otherwise, he'd look like a madman. He continued to berate himself; muttering underneath his breath and kicking up dust every once in a while the entire way home.


	25. Dinner is Served

**AN: My first full week of classes... oh, how I just want to cry. And cry. And cry some more. **

**Never have I seen syllabi that is as long as the ones I've gotten this quarter. With the workload that is looming on the horizon, I don't know when this story will be completed... which sucks big, hairy balls because I had intended to end it soon but I just don't know if I'll have the luxury of time to do so. **

**And yes, time is a luxury when you are a (graduating!!) college student. **

**So please bear with me. I don't intend on abandoning the story so don't you dare abandon me! The quarter is 10 weeks long and I'll try, try, try to sneak in an update here and there but there are no promises nor guarantees. **

**So without further ado, I present to you, chapter 25. **

* * *

**Chapter Twenty Five – Dinner is Served**

He woke up the next morning but refused to get out of bed. He lied there on his back in his enormous bed dreading the day that was set before him.

But really, he had no one else to blame but himself. After all, he was the one who stupidly suggested it. And he was the one who stupidly insisted on it even after she expressed concern.

He was fucked.  
And there was no backing out of this one.  
She had offered it.  
But he shot it down.

And now he was stuck.

Stupid fucking pride.

He smothered a pillow over his face and screamed into it; muffling profanities emitting from underneath. He was relatively sure that there wasn't even anything that was remotely edible in his kitchen. Meaning he would need to go out and physically purchase edible food items.

Oh, the joy.

After several more minutes of sulking, he finally rolled himself out of bed and into the bathroom. After a quick shower, he investigated the state of his kitchen and found that he really didn't have anything in it. Not even snacks.

Blowing out a puff of air, he grabbed his money and headed off to the street market. When he arrived he was in awe. He passed by this area several times with Tenten and Lee after their training sessions but he never notice just how many street vendors there were. It ranged from selling vegetables to meat to seafood to fruits, electronics and pets, jewelry to flowers, books and clothes, as well as toys, ornaments, arts and crafts, souvenirs, and various eateries.

He wanted to stop at all of them just to take a look and sate his curiosity but he had a job to complete and treated it like a mission.

He didn't have a menu planned; he didn't know you needed one. So he didn't know where to start. Using logic, he decided to go with the food items that had a less chance of spoilage: vegetables. He bought hakusai, daikon, kaiware, nira, and various mushrooms: shiitake, enokitake, and shimeji.

Next, after being shoved by the sheer mass of people, he found himself in the meats section of the market. Seeing he was there, he bought several pieces of kobe beef, pork, and some chicken. Seeing the seafood market only several meters away, he quickly dashed toward it; fighting the hustle and bustle of the crowded market and bought katsuo, tako, and hotate-gai.

Armed with more food than he knew what to do with, more than was even necessary, he nearly tackled Hinata.

"Neji nii-san, what is all of this?"  
"Uh, well, it's food."  
"Yeah... I can see that. But why do you have so much of it?"  
"I'm cooking tonight."

Hinata promptly burst into hysterics but seeing the look on her older cousin's face told her that he wasn't joking.

Not like he would joke in the first place.  
And then she remembered that her cousin doesn't _have_ a sense of humor.

She cleared her throat, "How about I help you carry some of this stuff? You spent so much time buying this it'll suck if you run into another poor soul and lose it all due to your own carelessness."  
"Gee, thanks for the insult and the offer."  
She grabbed two bags from his arms, "No problem," she replied cheekily.

He was amazed that she could speak to him like that. Ten years ago, she wouldn't even dare; wouldn't even dream it.  
And now, he gets cheekiness from her.  
Oh, how the times have changed. He was glad of how their relationship evolved and changed. It was a lot easier liking someone than spending all his time hating them.

But still, a _little_ respect for your elders would be nice.

They arrived at his apartment and she helped him put the grocery away, "So who are you cooking for anyway?"  
"Who said anything about cooking for someone?"  
"Well, you're certainly not cooking for yourself."  
"How do you know that?"  
"You bought way too much food for only one person to consume."  
"I can be stocking up for the week."  
"True, but you've never cooked for yourself and I just don't see you starting now."

He paused at her logic and then cursed, "Damn! Okay! It's for Michi."  
"Michi? The ANBU captain you had me help you research a couple of months ago?"  
"That's the one."  
"Oh..." and then, "Why?"

He froze at the question. It was an innocent question but the implications underlying it were tremendous, "I kind of upset her so I'm cooking to make it up to her."  
"You're bribing her with food? Why not just get her something... shiny?"  
"You don't know this girl. She doesn't care about anything that's shiny or glowy or flashy. The girl thinks with her stomach."  
"Interesting... When is this dinner?"  
"Tonight," he grumbled.  
"Tonight?!" she shouted.  
"Yea, I know... Stupid me agreed to prepare dinner on such short notice."  
"But- but you don't even know how to cook!"  
"Why, yes, thank you Hinata, for pointing that out. I was _completely _unaware of that particular shortcoming until you mentioned it."

She furrowed her brows, "How about I help you?"  
He stopped what he was doing and looked at her, "What?"  
"I can help you if you want."  
He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, "Really?"  
Startled at the gesture, she nodded profusely, "Hinata! You are a life saver! During our next training session, I'll _let_ you beat me."

She glared at him but began to futz around the kitchen, "So you didn't tell me why you're cooking for her."  
"I told you, I upset her."  
"No, you told me what the dinner is for but you haven't told me why."  
"Wh-what do you mean?"  
"This dinner seems to be rather important to you. I mean why else would you buy out the entire market? Why do you care so much?"  
"Because... if I don't do this, she'll remain pissed at me and she's not someone you want to have pissed at you."

She looked at him skeptically, finger tapping her chin, "No, that's not it. What's the real reason you're so concerned about this?"  
Exasperated, he exploded, "None of your business!"

It finally dawned on her and she grinned widely and mischievously, "Ohhhh, right... none of my business... I get it," she smirked at her older cousin.

Neji's face fell in sheer horror; all color from his face drained.

Was she... _smirking_ at him?  
When did she learn how to smirk?  
He didn't even know she _knew_ how to smirk!  
He didn't even know it was _physically possible_ for her to smirk!

And... did she just _wink_ at him?

When did she become so mischievous?  
And who does he need to _kill_ for teaching her these things?

* * *

A knock came from the door and Neji answered, "You're early."

Still sour from last night's 'buddy' brush off, she blandly said, "I thought you'd need some help considering your kitchen skills are nonexistent... _buddy_."

He winced then cleared his throat and let her in. She walked toward the kitchen and found a purple hair female.

Upon turning around, she noticed that she was a Hyuga, "You must be Terakami-san. I'm Hinata."  
"Nice to meet you, Hinata-sama."  
"Hinata is my cousin. She was helping me."  
"Ah, so that means that you're not the one who's cooking. That's breaking the deal isn't it?"  
"I said she was _helping_."  
"So I don't need to help? Yay for me," she looked around, "Where's the restroom? I need to wash my hands... I got it all muddy."  
"From what?"  
"A couple of kids were playing ball... I joined them for a bit. So... restroom?"  
"It's down the hall."

Michi left the kitchen and Hinata whispered, "She's pretty."  
"Shut up," he grumbled.

"Okay, the mushrooms, hakusai, daikon, and pork are on the skillet. You just need keep it warm until you're ready to serve. The beef is in the oven... take it out after 30 minutes but serve it after the vegetables. The tonjiru soup and tataki is ready so start with that. I need to get going."  
"Going? Going where?"  
"I have a life, Nii-san."

At his appalled face, she reassured, "Relax Neji, I've given you instructions. Just follow them."  
"But..."  
"Bye, Nii-san."  
"But-"  
"Hinata-sama left?"

Startled by her reappearance, he quickly spun around, "Yeah, she... has a life apparently." He shook out of his revere, "Why don't you sit? I'll go set things up."

Allowing him to fawn over her, she took a seat and watched him trying to get things ready. After several minutes, he served the soup followed by the tataki. She seemed relatively pleased with the food and he mentally thanked Hinata for helping him.

So far, so good.

She almost choked on a piece of tataki and pointed to the kitchen, "Neji, your oven!"  
"My oven?"  
"Look!" she shouted.

He turned away and saw a huge cloud of smoke billowing from his oven, "Shit!" He ran to the kitchen and pulled the pan from the oven.

Without oven gloves.

He let out an unmanly yelp and dropped the pan which landed on the floor with a loud crash; splattering the juice and meat across the kitchen floor.  
There was then a soft sizzle which quickly became louder. Michi ran to the stove and turned off the fire. The vegetables had begun to burn and fizzle over the skillet when all of a sudden, the entire pan burst into flames.

So much for so far, so good.

* * *

"Ahem, thanks for the dinner."  
"You mean that fiasco?"  
"It wasn't that bad..."  
"There was smoke coming from the oven!"

"But the soup and tataki was good..."  
"Hinata made that."  
"The sake was delicious."  
"It came from a bottle!"

"The dessert?" she asked meekly.  
"It was ice cream," he growled.

"The mushrooms were good... I really enjoyed the mushrooms... you know, the ones that weren't... burnt," she said miserably after seeing his dejected face.

"Who are you trying to fool? It was horrible. I should've just taken you out for dinner."  
"At least you tried... that's what matters."  
"I'm sorry that dinner was ruined."  
"Really, Neji it could have been worse."  
"Oh, you mean like how we needed to use the fire extinguisher!?"  
He paused and looked down glumly before exploding, "How does someone _ruin_ a perfectly good piece of kobe beef?!"

"Neji, its fine..."  
"I mean she left me with simple instructions!"  
"Nej-"  
"Am I that incompetent that I can't even follow simple directions?!"  
"Neji! Don't worry about it. With more practice you'll be fine... Maybe... I think."  
"You mean do this again? No, thank you. I like my kitchen in one piece... despite my never using it."  
"At least the fire department didn't show up on your doorstep."  
He cracked a rare smile along with a chuckle, "That doesn't make me feel any better. But thanks anyway."

They arrived at her apartment and found a small note taped to the door, "Huh, looks like Sakura's working the late shift."  
"You leave messages for each other?"  
"Yeah, I'd leave her messages on the bathroom mirror when she's in the shower after it'd get all fogged up."  
"The bathroom?"  
"Yeah, it's not like she has any appendages I don't have or haven't seen before."  
"Right... sure... Of course... that makes sense... I guess," there was a brief paused before idiocy took over, "Well... good night," he said and in a momentarily lapse of judgment, he once again gave her a hearty slap on her shoulder.

She bit her lip and shook her head in disappointment.  
She took a deep, calming breath and grabbed him by the lapels and smashed her lips upon his. After breaking away she sweetly yet threateningly said, "I am _not_ one of your training buddies. Nor am I one of your drinking buddies, so don't treat me like one."

She released him and huskily whispered in his ear, "Good night, Neji-kun," before she disappeared into the apartment.

And for the second night in a row, he was stupefied; dumbfounded. Except this time, he didn't feel like an ass or an idiot. He knew that now was as good as any to make his move. He turned and began walking back to his apartment with a wide, cheesy smile plastered on his face.

* * *

**AN: All those Japanese food names sure sound good don't they? You can find it all on Wikipedia if you want to know what they are. I'm far too lazy to re-look them u****p.**

**What a fun chapter. It was especially fun writing the interaction between Neji and Hinata and all that smirking business.  
And then the 'unmanly yelp' was comedy gold. I had to let out a little chuckle after that one liner. **

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter and remember to review! (Especially now since the next update is uncertain and a butt load of reviews may persuade me to take a break. hint-hint)**


	26. Lucky You

AN: Oh, my dear readers... how long have you had to wait? Many apologies, minions.

I just finished a 70 page business report and with my new found freedom, I decided to write and post a new chapter before embarking on my next 5 page research paper... and then a 20 pager behemoth... although 20 pages sure pales in comparison to 70 doesn't it?

Anyhoo, chapter 26 it is.

To all you youngings: please turn off the computer screen because this chapter isn't for the oh, so innocent eyes.

For those who aren't youngings, enjoy and review, review, review.

I'll be back (most likely) in four weeks. By then, I'll be a college graduate.

WHOO HOO!!

Now, who's first to congratulate me! ;)

**Chapter Twenty Six – Lucky You **

She stepped out of the hot, steamy room after taking a hot shower when she returned from the abominable disaster of a dinner. She gently squeezed the back of her neck; easing the tension that built up there during the course of the night: scrambling to turn the stove off then running to find a fire extinguisher all while Neji was howling in pain in the background.

After the immediate emergency was taken care of, she immediately turned her attention to his wounds. She grimaced at the mangled sight but wasn't as bad as it looked; they were barely considered first degree burns with no damage to the nerves and she was able to heal them quick and painless.

After that, they cleaned up the mess on the floor left by the beef splattering in a million different directions. He tried to salvage whatever was left in the evening as best as he could but wasn't the most successful of attempts. She chuckled when she recalled the look on his face when he saw smoke emitting from his oven.

_If only I had a camera._

She pulled on a light green camisole and white shorts. As she made her way to the bed, she felt a cool breeze entering the room. Knowing that she closed the window, she spun around; ready to defend herself.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"I was on my way home and for some reason, I ended up here."

"Here? In my room, here?"

"Yeah, funny right?"

"Oh yea, so much so that I pissed in my pants."

"No need to be crude."  
"What are you doing here?"

"You've been back for a while but we haven't had a chance to catch up."  
"So you choose _now_?"

"Yea, why not?"

"It's late for one. And two, I'm tired. So if you'll please," she waved her hand toward the door.

"Oh come on."  
"Kakashi, seriously, we'll do this next time. Hell we'll stay up all night swapping stories. But not tonight."

"Fine, party pooper."

"Good night!"

She closed the window and began making her way back to her bed when another cool breeze entered the room, "I thought I told you to go away."  
"I don't remember you telling me that," startled, she spun and saw Neji.

"What the fuck? Why is everyone using the window?"

"It must be the convenience."  
"Yea, must be because everyone knows that scaling seven stories is _far more_ convenient than using the _**stairs**_."

"Can't argue with you there."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm not sure."  
"You're not sure? Okay, well the _window_ is right there, you can show yourself out."

He grabbed her arm and covered her lips with his own. Surprised by his sudden actions, she gasped and he took advantage by slipping his tongue into her open mouth.

He was on his way home but halfway through, he turned back. He initially just wanted to talk to her; to find out what that kiss meant: if it meant that she felt the same way about him as he did for her. But when he saw her in her soft cottony chemise, her nipples hardened by the cold, all thoughts of talking went out the window and was replaced by the urge to ravish her.

She pulled away from him and had a small smile on her face, "Neji-kun, what exactly do you think you're doing?"

"Well I was hoping to continue to do this and maybe it'll lead to something a little more."

"A little?"

"Okay, a lot. Hoping it'll lead to a lot more."  
"Hmm, thought so."

He moved in toward her but pulled back, "Sakura is still at the hospital right?"

She chuckled, "Yes, she has the graveyard shift. She won't be home till morning."

"Okay, good."

She wrapped her arms around him and he stroked the small of her back. She tugged at his shirt and they broke away temporarily to remove the offending material. Their lips rejoined as her hands rubbed against his hard chest and traveled to the hard, sinewy muscles of his back and arms. They collectively moaned and he returned the favor; tearing her top off her body.

"Hey!" she cried when she heard the fabric ripping.

"Sorry. Can't wait. Get you a new one."

He picked her up off of the ground and carried her to her bed in the middle of the room. They dropped into the bed but Michi yelped. She reached behind her back and pulled out a hardcover book that she was reading last night.

He took the book and chuckled, "Icha, Icha Paradise?"

She grabbed the book back and chucked it across the room, "You have a problem with that?"

"Not at all. I just didn't realize that someone other than Kakashi-sensei read that."

"What can I say? It's riveting entertainment," she grabbed the back of his head and smashed her lips on his.

He groped her breast and gently squeezed the soft, round globe. She groaned and tore her lips away from him only to latch onto his throbbing pulse. A deep, pleasurable shudder shook his entire body indicating his approval. His calloused fingers pinched, tugged, and stroked at her nipple; hardened by the combination of arousal and the coolness of the night air in the room. She gasped and wrapped her legs around his waist; inadvertently placing her aroused center directly on his fully erect member.

He gasped desperately for air as pleasure racked his body and he pushed into her to increase his pleasure. He took her nipple in his mouth, teasing it; using his teeth to scrape the sensitive nub and lapping and tasting the small bud with his tongue. She let out a loud gasp at his hot, moist tongue on her pert bud.

His hand traveled downward as he pulled her shorts and panties off to the side. He slipped a long, strong finger into her soft, moist folds. He let out a guttural moan when he discovered she was throbbing, wet, and hot. He grinned with male pride when she parted her legs for him and arched her back; silently asking for more contact.

Wanting to feel more of him, she began tugging at his pants; indicating that she wanted to remove the garment. He helped by pulling his pants off and then assisted her in taking off her shorts. With nothing separating their bodies, the heat in the room rose to almost suffocating levels. Their hot, naked flesh met for the first time and the heat and friction between the two were electric. She grabbed his buttocks and pulled him into her body. He quickly positioned himself at her entrance; his eyes rolling to the back of his head at the heat radiating from her opening.

He slipped into her entrance easily; her pussy already slick with her hot, sticky juices. The pleasure from her hot, willing body was blinding; her velvety walls clamping down on his cock as he pushed himself deeper and deeper into her.

Once his arousal was fully in her, he stopped to collect his ragged breath and swarming thoughts in order to keep from embarrassing himself like an inexperienced, horny teenager.

Even if that's what she made him feel like.

Sensing his hesitance, she saucily asked, "What's the matter? Need some help?"

He saw her eyes dance in amusement, "I can handle this just fine. But if you do feel the need to, I wouldn't dream of stopping you."

She grabbed a fistful of his long, lush hair and harshly pulled him down. They allowed their tongues to duel while their sweat slicked bodies rocked against each other.

As their frenzied movements increased, he grasped her right leg and hooked it over his shoulder. The new angle and increased leverage allowed him more access to her wonderfully, unbearably hot abyss; allowing her to take him faster, harder, and deeper.

Her nails dug into his unmarred, sleek, sweat slick back. And when he sped up, she was able to meet him thrust for thrust; their bodies approaching closer and closer to the ultimate pinnacle; to the scorching, blinding, white hot precipice of their frenzied mating.

"Nej-" she cried out his name but he covered her mouth with his; swallowing her screams. He felt her inner walls closing in all around him, squeezing his most sensitive organ in the most delicious way and her blistering juices covering his engorged member; burning his innermost core. He reciprocated, shooting his hot seed into her hot body and shouted her name in reverent bliss.

She felt her core fill up and was beginning to quickly overflow with the hot, sticky fluid from both bodies; flowing down their thighs and onto the bed. After several more thrusts, he collapsed onto her. When their breathing and racing hearts began to slow, he carefully rolled their bodies so she was on top.

Still connected, he stroked her sweat soaked back, "Lucky Sakura isn't home. All of your yelling would have woken her up."  
She slapped his chest, "_I_ was _not_ the one who was screaming like a loon! 'Oh, Michi!'" she mocked.

He tore the blanket off of the bed exposing their bodies to the cool air. He stood on the bed in all his wonderfully naked glory and pointed to her, "_**You **_are in _**so** _much trouble for mocking me!"

The roguish grin that graced his face meant that he was teasing her. She held her hand over her mouth, shocked at the sudden emergence of his playful side, "Oh really? And how do you plan on punishing me?" she asked coyly.

His grin became wider and he dove at her, tickling her mercilessly as she broke out into hysterics, "S-s-stop! N-no! Stop!" she wheezed in between laughs. He continued his assault until he found himself back in between her legs.

They kissed roughly and felt their lusty desires for each other return in full force. They held each other close and gave into their wonton needs; stroking the flames that seemed intent on burning for as long as possible.

Not wanting to burden the night with serious talks, in an unspoken pact, they decided to leave that particular talk to a future date.

AN: Hope you enjoyed this chapter... had some writers block toward the end there but I grinded it out (pats on back) and just a friendly reminder: Review!

By the way, my brain has been in overdrive and I'm already plotting two different stories (a sequel to this and an entirely new story) so keep an eye out for that in the near future. Until then, Au revoir!


	27. Cute Birthmark

AN: I can't believe it... by this time tomorrow, i will be a college graduate... i'm still in shock and awe. after 4 years of hard work, i am finally graduating! All i have to do now is find a job. That shouldn't be too hard... right?

**Chapter Twenty Seven – Cute Birthmark**

She woke up entangled in a mess of limbs. She tried wriggling out of Neji's grip without waking him but was unsuccessful. After several more tries, she was finally able to extract herself from his tight embrace. She grabbed her robe, some clothes and left the room to head to the bathroom. She squeezed her sore muscles in her neck and felt the dull ache between her legs which gradually spread down her legs to her back, up her shoulders and down her arms.

She stood underneath the spray of hot water and waited for the aches and soreness to fade away. She stayed in the shower a little longer to ease any remaining tightness in her body as the memories from last night flooded her thoughts; the feeling of him above her, beneath her, inside of her.

She sighed contently at the delightful memories before stepping out of the shower.

--

She came home from a long night of babysitting ill patients and was shit tired. She kicked off her shoes and threw her keys on the coffee table. She looked around and noticed that Michi wasn't awake yet so she decided to wake her before heading off to bed herself.

"Good morn – gah!" She saw a naked man sprawled facedown across the bed and quickly pulled the door shut. That was _not_ what she had been expecting.

"Someone had fun last night," she grinned.

Suddenly not feeling sleepy anymore, she sat in the living room waiting for Michi to emerge. She finally came out from the bathroom and Sakura immediately pulled Michi into the couch.

"Ouch! Sakura, what the hell?"

"Who is he?"

"Pardon?"

"Don't play dumb! I saw a naked man in your bed... a very naked man."  
"You didn't see who it was?"

Sakura looked appalled, "I wasn't going to stay and gawk at him!"  
"No, but I bet you wanted to."  
Sakura sputtered at Michi's accusation, "S-shut up!"

"Oh, come on. I'm sure you noticed his body right? Isn't it the most luxurious male specimen you've ever laid eyes on? A body to drool over?"

She smacked her arm at her teasing, "S-stop it! Now tell me who he is."

Michi sighed and pushed herself off the couch and walked to the kitchen, "Sakura, you are a smart and clever girl. I'm sure you can figure it out without my help." Michi opened the refrigerator, "Great, we're out of milk."

"We are? I guess it's been a while since we went grocery shopping."  
"I'll go to the store."  
"No!"  
"Why not?"

"What if your naked man wakes up?"

"I doubt he'd wander out here without clothes, Sakura."  
"Still. I'll go. It's not that far anyway."

"Suit yourself."  
"I'll be back in a bit. We are going to talk more about this!"  
"Of course we will," Michi muttered.

--

He groaned at the soreness that enveloped his entire body. When he remembered what had happened to get his body in such condition, he grinned roguishly, he had the most splendid memories of last night but when he discovered she was missing from the bed, he feared that it was only a dream. But one glance at the room indicated that he was in her room and last night wasn't a dream. He rolled off the bed and padded out of the room.

He found her sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper.

He wrapped his arms around her from behind and whispered, "You know you weren't there when I woke up this morning. That's the third time you've left me all alone in bed."  
"Third time?"

"Once in the cave the morning after, then the morning after I stitched you up, and again this morning. Next time, I'm going to have to tie you to the bed." He smirked widely at the idea.

She shook her head in astonishment, "Okay, one: those two instances don't count and two, I'd like to see you try," she turned around and saw him standing there stark naked.

"So much for not wandering out here with no clothes," she muttered amusingly, "You, uh, want to put some clothes on there, buddy?"

He smirked, "What's the matter? Can't resist my tight body?" he asked while running his hands across his abdomen and letting his hand dip dangerously lower.

She snorted at his crassness, "Hardly. Sakura will be home any moment. And she knew that I had a 'very naked man' in my bed. But if you don't mind her seeing you buck ass naked, then by all means, don't put on clothes."  
"I thought Sakura was already home."

"She was. We ran out of milk so she went to get some."

"But I want some breakfast."  
"I'll make some. Like I'd really miss a meal. Go get dressed."

"Yes, ma'am," he gave her a small kiss and darted back to the room.

He quickly pulled on his clothes and snuck out the window. He had planned on returning only after Sakura returned from the store. It wasn't because he didn't want her to know but he wasn't ready to tell anyone anything until he and Michi discussed the status of their relationship.

--

She hummed merrily on her way home from the store when in the corner of her eye she saw a figure disappear behind another building.

She smirked, "I've got you now," she cackled mischievously.

She entered the apartment and was greeted with the sight of Michi reading the newspaper. It irked her that she could be so calm and collected after what happened this morning.

"You're back."  
"I'm back," she placed the milk in the refrigerator and sat directly across from Michi.

"You actually just missed the 'very naked man.'"

"Really?"

"Really."  
"Oh, darn. But you know what?"  
"What?"

"I have a feeling that I'd meet him sooner or later. I can wait."  
"Oh? Why the change of heart? You were awfully curious this morning."

"I know. But I thought about it and you're right. I'm a smart girl. I'm sure I can figure it out on my own."

A knock came from the door and Sakura bolted toward it, "Sakura, relax! Who ever it is isn't going anywhere."

"What if it's your naked man?"  
"He just left. Why would he come back?"

"I don't know. Maybe he forgot something."  
Michi shook her head at her borderline crazy roommate.

Sakura nearly ripped the door off its hinges, "Oh, it's just you," she said sullenly and stomped back to the table.

"Good morning to you too, Sakura," seemingly unaffected by her dismal greeting.

He closed the door and walked over to where the two girls were sitting, "Good morning, Michi."

She smirked, "Good morning, Neji-kun."

"So, what's for breakfast?"

"I haven't started making anything. As you can see, I'm reading the newspaper."

"But I'm hungry."  
"You're going to have to wait."  
"But I'm hungry now."

"Why so eager? As I recall, I had to force food down your throat."

"What can I say? I had a very... eventful night."

She smirked with pride knowing that he was referring to her, "I bet you did."

He looked at her curiously, "What about you? Did you have an eventful night? Anything worth sharing?" he asked with a hint of playfulness in his tone.  
She saw him waggle his eyebrows at her and knew what he was trying to get at. She tapped her finger against her chin as if thinking about it, "No, not that I recall," she teased.

His smile turned into a scowl. Sakura watched the comfortable banter between the two; unaware that the cold, proud, and arrogant Neji was capable of interacting in such a manner that resembled remarkably like human behavior and finally got up from her seat.

"Okay, enough of this. I'm going to bed."

"Sleep well."  
"Thanks." She was halfway out of the room when she turned back, "Oh Neji, cute birthmark by the way," she smirked at his stunned face as Michi cackled hysterically.

"W-what? What does that mean? Wh-what did she mean?"

Neji glared at the two of them until their laughter died down, "It means that she knows that you were here last night," she heaved out through her breathless laughter.

"What?"

Sakura explained, "I saw you climbing out the window as I was coming home from the store."

Neji sputtered but no words came out, "You should really be careful next time if you don't want to get caught."

"Oh, Sakura. I told you you're a smart girl."  
"It wasn't hard. You spend most of your time with him anyway."

Neji still stunned at the sudden turn of events, "Wh-wha-what birthmark?"

Michi was amused at his reaction and was still laughing at his discomfort, "You have a birthmark on your butt," she turned her attention to Sakura, "And you said you didn't see much. You naughty liar."

"Oh shut up. It was only a quick glimpse. I must say though, I've examined you so many times; I'm surprised I've never noticed it. Okay, I really need to get some sleep now. Good night. Or good morning. Whatever."  
"'Night."

Sakura left and Neji stared off into space; looking at nothing in particular, "Birthmark?"

Michi was still snickering and Neji felt his head begin to throb unbearably and her evil cackling wasn't helping matters.

He let his head drop on to the table in a loud thump and groaned in which she squealed in delight.

AN: There's only one more chapter? Are you excited? After all that laboring and waiting? Remember to review! that's my motivation to get chapters out as soon as possible so enjoy!


	28. An Uncertain Future

AN: I am a college graduate... oh yea!!

Well, here's the final chapter. It was a long and arduous process but it's been super fun doing so. Thank you all for all the love and support and sticking with me for so long.

So thank you and enjoy and as always, review!!

**Chapter Twenty Eight – An Uncertain Future**

It had been several weeks since Sakura had caught them and they still haven't discussed the status of their relationship. But it wasn't for the lack of trying. Neji was preoccupied and was handed various missions left and right. And Michi, she had other engagements to take care of.

Sakura was sent off to a mission with Naruto and as of yet hasn't returned. It had been weeks since Sakura first left on her mission and it left the hospital shorthanded. Tsunade was able to recruit Michi into working there temporarily until Sakura returned. She was reluctant but Tsunade attacked Michi's only known weakness: her ego. She had said that Michi was skilled and smart and brilliant and her experience in the area made her the perfect candidate to take over. Michi bitched and moaned but finally agreed.

She thought Tsunade had enough on her plate and didn't want her to worry about the trivial things that she didn't need worry about.

Tsunade was able to successfully diffuse the tension between Konoha and Iwagakure. It took a while and it wasn't easy and as expected, the Tsuchikage had sent several spies to investigate the missing Life Orb and when they found nothing, they quietly slipped out of the country. Since then, Tsunade had been sending several advisors and ninjas to negotiate a cease of arms. She also sent several ninjas to a patrol the area and make sure neither side did something that would prove detrimental to their already shaky relationship.

And while currently there doesn't seem to be a war looming on the horizon, they were still treading lightly on very thin ice. The distrust was still there and it was doubtful that their loathing for each other could ever go away but for now, war didn't seem imminent. But Tsunade's top advisors were still nervous so she began mobilizing a small group of troops and organizing them should she need to deploy them at a moment's notice in the future.

But with the current situation, she was hopeful that it wouldn't be necessary. But like everything else, the future was uncertain.

At the hospital, Michi was on her last rotation of the day and she spent most of her time with one particular patient. She knew that she was playing favorites but she didn't particularly care.

She was currently playing one of her favorite games with one of her favorite patients.

The game: Shogi.

The patient: Nara Shikamaru.

"Oh! You suck! You beat me again!"

"That's Shikamaru for you... our resident strategical genius," a blonde said while entering the room.

"Yea... even smarter than the other resident genius, Hyuga," another spat in contempt.

"Kiba, you can't still be sore over the fact that Neji kicked your ass! What did you expect? He's a genius! And a Hyuga!"  
"What is that supposed to mean?!"

"Honey, I'm sorry but you can't really think that _you_ would be able to beat someone of _his_ caliber. That's just silly... not to mention a bit delusional. He's a Hyuga for fuck's sake!"

"You know I really hate it when you guys argue," the heavy set ninja piped up.

"Sorry," she sincerely apologized before turning toward Michi, "We haven't met have we? I'm Yamanaka Ino. This is Kiba and Chouji."

"So you're Ino. Sakura has told me a lot about you. I'm Michi."

"I've heard about you as well. Nice to finally have a face to go with the name."  
"Likewise."

"We bought you fruit, Shikamaru."  
"Thanks Chouji, but I just ate. You can have it."  
"Awesome!"

Chouji happily gobbled the contents of the basket.

Michi stared at the shogi board and she recognized how he was able to beat her, "I can't believe you beat me. All day long!"  
"Sorry. If it makes you feel better, it wasn't easy. Every time I think I got you cornered you do something I wasn't able to anticipate. You're really good."  
She chuckled, "I used to play with my dad all the time... still wasn't able to beat you though."

"There's always tomorrow."

She winked slyly at him.

Michi stood up, "Well, I have to finish my rounds. Guys, don't stay too long, okay?" The three nodded in understanding, "Shikamaru," she said in a warning tone.

"I know, I know. Get some rest."  
"Good to see you've been paying attention. Now, if you're a good boy, I'll join you in cloud watching when I let you out tomorrow. And maybe we'll play some more shoji."  
In an uncharacteristic manner, Shikamaru enthusiastically asked, "Really?"

She nodded but then sternly added, "But only if you're good."  
"I promise I will be."  
"Good. Then it's a date. Ino-san, Kiba-kun, Chouji-kun, I'll see you around."

Her last stop was a new patient. She looked at the chart and smirked. She unclasped her top two buttons and hiked her skirt up a little. She opened the door and asked, "Now what seems to be the problem, Neji-kun?"

He lost his train of thought at the sight of her, "I, um, was tr-training... with Hinata. She got a lucky shot in."

He was sitting on the bed as she approached him, "Hmm. That's a pretty nasty laceration," her body directly in front of him. Her breasts swaying appetizingly in front of his face as she fussed over his wound. She was so close that he could taste her but still so far from reach. He licked his lips and bit the inside of his mouth to keep himself calm.

"All done." She grinned at him.

Finding his voice again, he placed his hands on her hips, "You know... that outfit becomes you."  
"Does it?"

He nodded slyly, "Oh yes, I mean look at those tits. I love those tits," he snuck a glance of her butt that was peeking out; "Get to see a little ass cheek too," his hand lightly squeezed her ass. She gasped playfully and slapped his hand, "Neji-kun! I will not allow such scandalous behavior! Naughty boy."

He grinned at the game they were playing, "I hope your other patients don't get to see you like this," he teased while using his finger to lightly trace the contours of her breasts.  
"Of course they do! I think that if all my patients see me like this, it helps accelerate their recovery time."

His jaw dropped in shock; he wasn't expecting to be serious.

Seeing the horrified look on his face, she cracked up, "I'm kidding! Only for you, Neji. Only for you."

"Oh, thank god. You almost gave me an aneurysm."

"Who would of ever thought that you'd turn out to be such a pervert."  
"I borrowed your Icha Icha Paradise."  
She burst into hysterics, "So that's where it went! I was looking all over for it!"

"Busted... guilty as charged."

He smiled up at her and then realized she had been wearing a nurse's outfit to which she modified it to call her own, "Now, you're a medic so _why_ are you wearing a nurse's outfit?"

"It looks better than the medic one! _I _look better in this than in the medic one."  
"So it's a fashion thing?"

"Well it sure as hell isn't a comfort or practicality thing. I look damn good in this than in the other one. It wasn't very flattering and no matter how much I alter it, it still makes me look dowdy and frumpy. Now look at me in this," she gestured to her outfit, "Does this make me look frumpy to you?"

He chuckled deeply, "I don't even know what frumpy is supposed to mean but I won't argue with you. You do look damn good in that."

He drew her closer and gave her a quick peck on the lips, "When did you get back?" she asked.

"This morning."  
"Why didn't you come see me?" she pouted prettily.

He stared at her lips; wanting nothing more than to suck her lower lip into his mouth but answered distractedly, "You looked busy... didn't want to bother you."

"I'm glad you're back."

She walked over to the trash and threw away the contaminated supplies. Moving quickly, he grabbed her from behind and pinned her against the wall and assaulted her hot mouth. She moaned and instinctively wrapped her arms around him and his clever hands slid under her open shirt and fondled her soft, supple breasts. She dragged her hand down to his evident arousal and rubbed him through the cloth.

He groaned and his body shook in pleasure. Keeping her hot, talented hand on his erection, he carried her and staggered toward the small hospital bed. Depositing her on the bed, he unhooked the third button of her shirt and her breasts tumbled out from her top. He pushed her legs apart and helped bunch up her skirt around her petite waist. Her dusty, pink nipples puckered instantly when he skimmed the small nub with his finger. He then fastened his lips to her luscious round globes and rubbed her sensitive clit with his fingers.

She gasped and arched her back for more contact but then remembered that they were in the hospital, "Oh... Neji. We have to..." she gasped loudly, "stop!"

He licked her behind the ear: her soft spot, "Not now."  
She whimpered, "We're in a hos- hospital."  
He kissed and tugged on her lower lip with his teeth, "It's late. No one will know."

She knew he was trying to distract him, "Someone can... walk in," she feebly pushed him away but that didn't discourage him from continuing his ministrations.

He pushed his fingers into her hot, wet crevasse and moaned into her ear.

Her thighs shook in pleasure but with all her self restraint and control, she gathered enough strength to push him away, shoving him off the bed and onto the floor.

Lying on his back, he groaned, "Okay, you're right, we'll stop," He pulled himself off the floor, "We need to talk anyway."

He watched lustfully as she clasped the buttons of her shirt back and pulled down her skirt, "Okay, so talk."

Neither one spoke up and the silence was deafening. She rolled her eyes, "Fine, I'll start. We slept together."

He nodded slowly, "Yes, we did."

"And judging from the way you attacked me just now, I assume you want to continue to sleep together."  
Again he nodded, "That would be an accurate assumption, yes."

"Okay. But then there's the issue of our 'relationship.'"  
"I agree."

She glared at him, "I am **_not _**going to do all the talking!"

He walked over to her, "Okay look, I like you. I think you are an amazing person and even with your flaws, I seem to be attracted to you."  
"I can say the same about you."  
"I don't have any flaws!"  
"_That's_ what you focus on? And you _do_ have flaws. You've got _plenty_ of them," she stressed.

"Fine! We both have flaws. As I was saying, I like you."

"As do I."

"And I want to be with you. I want to see where our relationship will go. I want to explore this," he motioned back and forth between them.

"I agree."

"Okay, now you're just doing that on purpose," he grumbled.  
"And now you know how it feels."

"Point taken. So?"

"So... I think it's a good idea. I want to explore this," she motioned back and forth; imitating him, "too."

"So we're in agreement. Good."

"Good."

"How about lunch tomorrow?"

"I can't. I have a date with Shikamaru tomorrow."  
"Ah, let me guess... cloud watching?"

"Followed by shogi."  
"You sure know how to please a guy."

"My observation skills are well documented. I was thinking of going with the buttons undone and the skirt up. What do you think?"

He smirked, "I think... if you're trying to get his attention, it's not going to work. He's more interested in the clouds than in anything else."  
"That may have been true when he was 12 but he's _all_ grown up now."  
He looked skeptical, "I can distract Shikamaru enough to get his head out of the clouds. Hell, I can even get Kakashi's head out of that damn book," she continued.

This was one challenge where he had a very high chance of losing. But he had the utmost confidence that his comrades wouldn't be drawn to her.

Kind of...

Sort of...

Okay, not really.

That was besides the point. The nature of their relationship had changed and there was no way in hell that he was going to let her out of the house dressed like that where all kinds of perverts can ogle at her.

He opted to divert the conversation, "Conceited aren't we?"

"Not conceited, just confident. And even if I were conceited, it's a hell of a lot better than being an arrogant, little prick."  
"Touché," he grinned impishly.

He held her face in his hands and gently brushed his lips across her cheeks, "Shift's over. Now you owe me for interrupting my fun," he huskily whispered.

Her body shivered and when he pulled back he was surprised to see her face become flush. Not by their earlier actions but because she was... blushing.

He smirked with pride at having able to produce such a reaction from her. He was amazed that despite being fucked six ways from Sunday mere weeks ago, she blushed from something as innocent as a brush on the cheek.

And he found that all more the endearing.

They walked out of the hospital hand in hand into the dark night that was only illuminated by the bright moon and into an uncertain future.


End file.
